Dear Boonville: It’s been heartening lately to read about so many students in our area who have graduated, received accolades and pursued their dreams.
I’m sure those of you who are proud parents have a better understanding of this than I.
This weekend, Julie and I traveled east to attend the graduation of my brother- and sister-in-law, Brice and Brittany.
They’ll be attending college in Tennessee this fall, and both of them are considering careers in education. I think that’s admirable, and I look forward to seeing where they’ll be years down the road.
One of my own brothers, Chad, just graduated this spring from Arizona State University’s journalism program, and I’m as proud as punch of him. He’s had extensive training in television and radio, he’s a fantastic musician, he has big dreams and he realizes them.
Boonville is right on par with the rest of the U.S. when it comes to getting a high school education: Seventy-seven percent of people 25 and older in Boonville have achieved at least a high school diploma, according to 2000 data from the U.S. Census Bureau. That’s just below the 80.4 percent reported nationally.
Education is hardly everything. Some people don’t get the opportunity to go to high school, much less college. From personal experience, I can tell you that I’ve learned a bunch of things on the job that I never talked about in school. Learning happens on the fly and in the field, in addition to the classroom.
While we’ve all come from different backgrounds, I think we can agree that students from our area should be recognized for their accomplishments.
The next question is this: What can we do to help make their dreams a reality?
Contact news and online editor Nate Birt by calling 882-5335 or e-mailing nate@boonvilledailynews.com.
