I had the chance to speak to a group of HS sophomores and juniors today as they visited GV's campus, and was asked to offer some advice/perspective on academics and such for folks just starting their college discernment process. Here's what I suggested (brief thread)
2/when you enroll in a college/university, that institution is asking you, and your family/care group, for a significant investment. Not just money. But your time, labor (emotional, cognitive, perhaps physical), willingness to take risks/question your priors, and more.
3/but you need to ask: is this an institution that wants me to invest all that, and yet doesn't reciprocate that investment? The "asks" associated with college are big ones. You shouldn't be asked to undertake all of that work alone and/or unsupported.
4/ And I'm talking about more than tutoring centers/learning support (although these things are important!). **How are you going to be supported as a member of that college's community?** This is the question to ask.
5/Will you be not only welcomed, but consistently re-welcomed, into that community? Does the college value who you are in *all* of your beautiful complexity? Are you affirmed by the college? Do you truly belong, celebrated for who you are and what you bring to the community?
6/This is what your college should be making explicit to you: We want you (*all of you*) to be a part of us. We need the experiences, strengths, and wisdom of all our students to be a true intellectual and academic community. This is where our collective strength lies.
7/Too many colleges will welcome you in the door, but not sustain you once you're there. Too many areas of higher ed ask for your labor and do not support or sustain you when that labor becomes overwhelming. Too many colleges only want part of you, not all of you.
8/So ask the questions, and be demanding about the answers you want to hear and see. Does this college want you for the right reasons? And will it reciprocate on the investment it asks you to make? You can get credentialed anywhere. Where can you get truly *educated?*
9/Education works best and most meaningfully when the learner is a part of a community. Learning is social. Community matters. So find the place that welcomes you because you're you--and will support you and affirm you as it challenges and pushes you. That's what matters.
10/College is hard. Learning at this level is demanding, and you'll be stretched, pushed, and challenged in ways you haven't ever been before. But you shouldn't be doing that by yourself, and you shouldn't be doing that w/o the support of the academic community around you. /end
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