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Appreciate the dedicated
By Devon Wiesend
This agreement is a wonderful idea — rewarding those students who work hard and keep their noses clean with an education that will give their future children better opportunities.
When Gov. Jim Doyle first mentioned the Wisconsin Covenant at his State of the State address, no one really took him very seriously because it sounded too good to be true.
This month, Doyle signed an agreement to assure that any hard working eighth-grade students will be assured a spot at a UW school after high school graduation. There are some criteria of course. For example, the student has to have a “B” average in eighth grade, and keep it all through high school. This is not unreasonable.
If a student is dedicated to bettering him/herself, I really don’t think a “B” average, staying clean and working with the community is too much to ask. This plan gives kids hope, and a goal.
No longer will kids have the excuse of, “Why bother trying, I’m not going to college anyway.” Now every child — no matter their economic background, skin color, class or who their parents know — will have an equal chance of getting into the school of their choice.
What could possibly be wrong with that? When I was in eighth grade, there was no assurance that I would get into college if I did well — especially since my family is not wealthy and we do not know any politicians. I realized quickly that, with three kids in the family, there was a good chance I would never get the opportunity to go to college. The sad part is that I wanted to be a doctor. I could have saved a few lives by now if I hadn’t given up.
But I did give up. Up until I entered high school, I was an honor roll student with an excitement for learning. When I knew that I didn’t have a guarantee of getting into college (meaning I couldn’t be a doctor) I stopped worrying about my grades, and they started slipping.
Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t drop out of high school and join the circus because of the devastation, but I also didn’t stay on the honor roll. I also did not keep myself drug and alcohol free or participant in any community service (voluntarily) or even bother going to college right after high school.
This program assures that students will receive enough financial aid to get them through college. This is brilliant because many of us had a hard time getting enough aid to be considered a full-time student. There is certainly not enough financial aid to put me through pre-med, medical school and the internship.
Plus if I wanted to specialize in anything (which I did, I wanted to be a cardiac surgeon) I would be even more screwed. There was never enough money, even if we were willing to pay it back when we graduated.
This program appears to be attempting to fix this problem. It is also trying to motivate kids enough to keep them off the streets. This agreement is a wonderful idea — rewarding those students who work hard and keep their noses clean with an education that will give their future children better opportunities. These children are having a door opened for them.
I wish this program had existed when I was in eighth grade. Maybe I’d be a doctor now, or perhaps I’d just play one on television.
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