Road to College Part 1

As a parent of tweens, I know that nowadays that college is going to play an important role in their future. I was in about 11th grade when I first started seriously thinking about college. Back in those days, it probably didn't require as much work and effort as it did now. Did I have a decent grade point average? Check. Did I have decent SAT scores? Check. I didn't even take them over to score better. Did I get into the only college I applied and wanted to go to? Check. However, I think my lack of preparation way before 11th grade can definitely be part of the reason why, at 42, I am still have no degree. But I digress.

I really had wished that I had taken the time to see what my son was doing in school. I figured that since he was very intelligent, he could make it through middle and high school without me to nudge him along the way. How wrong I was. He dropped out in the 11th grade. He was dissatisfied with the classes and most teachers didn't give a darn if you made it out of high school. With schools constantly being built back when there was the housing boom in Las Vegas, they just needed teachers to fill them. Not all of them were quality. So, it looked like neither myself or my son were destined for a college degree. He was 10 points from passing his G.E.D. and now, when I feel like it's too late for me to nudge and/or interfere, I do keep at him to retake it. I just don't know if he ever will.

When my girls came along, I had learned from my mistakes and knew that I had to do things differently with them. I knew that they needed to get through school and move onto college so that at some point they will be able to be independent and not end up like me: dependent on someone else. I remember the one time my oldest daughter, who is now 12, told me when she was much younger, that she is going to be like me. She was going to get married so she could have a husband take care of her. I can tell you that I seriously flipped out! I told her that I never wanted to hear that from her again. I haven't. She understands the importance of a good education and what that will bring in her life.

My girls are in 5th and 7th grade, and I've already been setting them on a course for success in high school and beyond. It doesn't even matter to me, that in the long run, the things they do now will not really matter in college and maybe not even high school. But, these things that they do or can do are stepping stones onto the road to college. It can all start in middle school. (to be continued)