When I was a freshman in high school, I sat next to a senior in my Spanish class, a football player who looked like he was about 28. Four weeks into the class, he got transferred out because he’d gotten F’s on our first four exams. He seemed like a nice guy. But by college admissions standards, it’s not a good sign when you’re (a) a senior taking classes with freshmen, and (b) failing those classes. It would have been easy to write that kid off as going nowhere fast in the future.
Two days ago, I saw this former Spanish washout on television. He’s a chef now, he has his own TV series, and he teaches cooking classes that fill up weeks in advance.
What you do in high school matters, and I would never tell a student or parent that failing out of classes isn’t cause for concern. But I mention this story here as a reminder that as long as kids stay away from things covered in the criminal code, it’s hard to make a mistake in high school that will permanently mar your life in the future.
Families, as your student progresses through high school and all its tribulations, keep things in perspective and remember that there is plenty of post-high school life left to live. But also know that working hard and learning how to succeed now will give your student a nice head start.