Graduation Speech : College Admissions

Students of color in the United States struggle to access higher education, as a result of institutional racism and discrimination. This is troubling because college education is considered a way to increase opportunity and chances of success with finding employment and earning a high salary. This disparity can be attributed to the history of racial segregation in the US education system, which has produced differences of opportunity between students of color and white students (Chaisson 2004). It is difficult for students of color in higher education; specifically those who attend predominantly white institutions (PWI’s), because they must confront systemic racism at these institutions as well as in the larger US society. How can we combat these disparities? Is equal opportunity and equality in higher education is the answer? Seemingly this would be the solution, but Brower (2004) argues that it is not enough to have legal equal access to education because, “for those entering college, 56 percent of black Americans, compared to 36 percent of white Americans, never graduate.” (pg. 96). Although this statistic directly focuses on African American college populations, it has implications for all students of color. This begs the question, what makes students of color and white students so different? Based on the sociohistorical context of higher education in the US, the variable that changes the success of a college student and their likelihood to graduate is race.

This reading is significant because it shows us the dire need to rethink, revolutionize, and create changes that will give students a color an opportunity to progress to higher education. We know that the only way that poor people of color will find some sort of social remobility is through higher education, but they cannot achieve that if things

Nowadays, teenagers and young adults are graduating high school and college and are unable to find jobs. A lot of them lack the basic skills needed to survive during adulthood. Institutions exist mainly to educate people on what they need to maintain a somewhat decent lifestyle. Students have been forced to take classes on a variety of subjects throughout high school, most of which have nothing to do with what they need to prepare them for life after education. Even in college, a majority of students do not know what career field they would like to enter, so when they graduate it is hard for them to get a job anywhere. Institutions are not arming students with the proper information needed to excel after education. So, new classes should be created and required for students to pass before graduating. They will be based on basic skills such as money management, customer service skills, and credit understanding.

I am the first to go to graduate college in my family. As such, I faced many struggles in my undergraduate career in that I did not have family or peers to turn to for support and resources that would help me in college. Yet, that adversity taught me about perseverance—moving forward when all seemed lost—and my schooling at CSU East Bay taught me that my struggles form part of a larger history of struggle by the poor, disenfranchised, and marginalized, many of who are today, unfortunately, African Americans. These experiences, in turn, play a significant role in my decision to pursue a graduate education and they now form a critical component in my ability to find ways to overcome barriers to higher education.

Obtaining a college degree is ideal and expected in today’s society. Having attended and completed course work at a college institution can have an enormous effect on an individual’s life outcome. There are currently 2.2 million black students in college, with that being approximately 15% of the college population (Payne & Suddler, 2014). Black students’ enrollment in college has increased 5% over the past 40 years (U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, 2015a). Although the Blacks students’ rate in college has increased it does not eliminate, nor decrease the challenges that comes with being a student.

Many people see education as a privilege, however I see it as an opportunity. As an African American male I make it my mission to continue the work of those black men and women who worked tirelessly to make sure that have the option to obtain higher education. I realize that I stand on the shoulder of those men and women. Hearing and understanding their stories of doing whatever it took to make sure that they were educated – knowing that education brought them dignity and respect that no one could take away from them; helped me understand that education is the key that unlocks doors. Education will allow me to be a change agent in the world and fight against social injustices and on behave of those who are unable to speak for themselves. Education

I submitted the graduate application to the one stop department on Friday. The department informed me that it should take up to 3 to 5 business days to be processed.

As higher education is becoming more and more expensive for students to attend college, it is making it harder for students of different backgrounds, especially low-income and middle-income families, to hold a degree beyond a high school level. Many colleges are not taking the initiative to take care of these students and are preventing these individuals from growing and climbing the socioeconomic ladder. Thus, it is imperative for a university to create opportunities for students of all backgrounds to have a chance of gaining a college degree because there are many benefits to furthering their education. At Example University, we will be the ones creating change towards our current state of education.

After sitting and thinking about challenges that may interrupt or derail my work towards my Bachelor’s Degree at Spring Arbor University, I have come up with two, that I believe I still need to work on in order to be successful. In this writing, I intend on conveying the two issues that threaten my pursuit of a degree as well as the solutions to those issues. I have shown growth in the two areas that I will discuss, as they were the very same issues that I started when I began my education three years ago at Spring Arbor University.

For the past four years I have been working as an Admissions Counselor and Recruiter. I have found my passion in working with students and guiding students throughout their transition into college. I would like to further my career in higher education as a Vice President of Enrollment Management. This paper will discuss the organizational division in which the position resides, identify the responsibilities and requirements for the position. I will also discuss the environment for the position and describe the leadership roles for this position.

In 2014, there were around half a million NCAA student athletes. Of these half a million students, right around 65% received some sort of scholarship to their university. The recruiting process is one that is vicious and very unfair in many different aspects. Recruits are given a time frame in which they must make their decision, leaving them often times making premature decisions which can very negatively effect their future. This is exactly what college coaches want. In the lucrative business of college recruiting, heavily sought after athletes are subject to several recruiting tactics by coaches who wish to better their university 's future. These tactics can include pressuring a child into making a decision prematurely, trying to get other recruits to convince the child to commit, and even threatening the child in some rare cases. Consequently, the students are caused to make rash decisions regarding their very own future. This results in students ending up somewhere they may not want to be for four of the most important years of their life. This may also result in students missing out on thousands of dollars in scholarships to other schools that were not using these recruiting tactics. Ultimately, the competitive recruiting practices are more important than the outcomes, because without these practices, the consequence would never happen. Thus, the effect is only forced by a cause, so if a cause is non-existent, the effect will never occur.

ACT, GPA, SAT, and writing ability are some major factors that Simpson college’s admissions use when determining if a student will be accepted or not. Like most other school students must meet certain recommendations in these areas to even get accepted. I think that a student’s ability to write should be the cornerstone of college admissions it allows the student to state their goals and values, can help be the deciding factor in the admission process, and it can be an opportunity for the students to display information they have learned over the years.

I am sure you have seen the increasing decline in students that are college-ready, that do not require remedial classes. Businesses are also struggling with hiring employees that are unprepared in some of the basic educational skills needed to perform their duties efficiently.

Senior year, a period full of college applications, prom dress shopping, and spending as much time with friends one may never see again is supposed to be “the time of my life,” and while I did have fun, I also hit the books as hard as I could. During that year, I partook in what my high school as “Dual Enrollment,” and took courses as a part-time student. That year, I was balancing a waitressing job, as well as both college and high school courses. It was difficult at first, but hard-work, and determination helped me complete the year. In the midst of it all, I was filling out college applications. Choosing a college to attend was not an easy decision. I was accepted into two great schools, but due to issues at my former home, I could not leave. Instead, I enrolled full-time at Cecil College, and at the end of my freshman year in college, including the courses I took during my senior year of high school, I managed to receive an overall GPA a 3.24, and I am hoping to receive an even higher one, at the end of this upcoming semester.

During a typical high school graduation, speeches are given by a select few, notable students. These notable students normally include the two students who earned the highest grade point averages out of all the students in their graduating class - the valedictorian and the salutatorian. Imagine a graduation, however, with no valedictorian or salutatorian speech. Imagine if there was no valedictorian or salutatorian. Imagine if there was no distinction of students ' academic performance during commencement or during the process of college admissions. While it may seem like no big deal - it may sound like a blessing when the length of a graduation ceremony is considered - the impact of a class ranking extends far beyond the privilege of giving a speech on graduation day. Class rankings are a vital component of high schools, and eradicating them would be detrimental to both colleges and students in many ways.