by: Cindy Pitts
Gilbert Buford Weekly Illustrated June
22, 2016
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photo credit: mosiacprep.com |
Summer is upon us the graduations ceremonies a memory Yet,
there are students who worked hard and made the grade yet didn't receive their
diploma. I have always told my kids as
they were growing up pick your battles.
I lived that as a parent as well. There were just some rules not worth
fighting over with your kids, So what, if my kid didn't want to change their or
yours wants to sleep in the bathtub one night.
Crazy stories on the news recently that caught my
attention. A straight A student had a beard throughout high school and was given a choice
shave the beard or don't get a diploma,
Really? The kid was a the top of his class and he made a choice. He
shaved all but just a small portion of his beard and sat in the audience and
cheered on his fellow classmates. I
applaud his decision. What are we thinking
when it comes to educating our children are we really so narrow minded that we
can't pick our battles any better than this.
The Board of Education in South Carolina passed a skinny jeans policy as improper dress. They are too distracting. My question is who
is it distracting? Apparently, it is
distracting to the clothes police at the school. Are they are so busy policing student attire
that they are forgetting about the real issue. Educating our children to become
the leaders of tomorrow. I am a big
proponent of the dress for success philosophy in business.
I also believe in being
yourself and expression through clothes are how teens express themselves. It is somewhat puzzling that the U.S. specifically
here in the south with Georgia being right in the middle of the "Bible
Belt" is unlike much of the
world.
We spend so much time worrying
about who is going to be disturbed we lose focus on the really important
issues. Is the fact that they wear jeans
that are form fitting or have a beard worth
all the hoopla? Teens dress the way
other teens dress. They want to be popular, accepted or perhaps they take the other route and dress completely
unique. I am not going to dwell on the transgender bathroom issue in the school
system I just have to ask myself and those who make the rules?
Here are some staggering statistics:
28% of all students report that they have been
bullied ages 6-12 according to stopbullying.gov. According to bullyingstatistics.org. one in four kids are bullied in the United States on a regular basis.
-According to the Department of Veteran Affairs' National Center for PTSD 13-35 percent of students have intentionally harmed themselves at some point.
-Teens 16 to 19 years of age were 3 ½ times more
likely than the general population to be victims of rape, attempted rape according to the 2012 maltreatment report released by the US. Department of Health and Human Services
-According to a 2013 survey titled "Youth Risk and Surveillance" ten percent of high school students reported physical victimization from a dating partner before they were surveyed.
-According to dosomething.org the United States represents five percent of the world's population and 75 percent of prescription drugs taken. 60 percent of teens who abuse prescription drugs get them free from friends and relatives.
Our teens face a great deal more at school than facial hair
which bathroom they use or how baggy or tight their jeans are. Why
are we drawing attention to all the wrong things?
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