Share Your Thoughts with Quinceanera.com, and enter for the chance to Win a Pair of Clippers Tickets!

 As you plan for your big Quince bash, you’ve surely begun to give some thought to your own future. So far, you’ve enjoyed nearly fifteen years under the close guidance of family, friends and educational systems, whose rules you’ve had to follow. As you come of age, you’ll soon realize that some rules were meant to be broken, and there are many important decisions out there that are only yours to make.

With President Obama promising this morning to give $900 million in federal grants (free government money) to states and school districts that agree to turn around  –or in some cases, close– the 2,000 schools across the country that produce more than half of the nation’s dropouts, we’ve decided to touch on this important subject.

In California, the dropout rate for public high school students is just over 20%, which means that in 2009, approximately 364,720 students did not complete their high school studies. According to the state Superintendent of public high schools Jack O’Connell, most of the students who drop out are African American and Hispanic.

We’ve all heard of those rare instances in which someone who doesn’t finish high school somehow manages to “make it” big, either in entertainment or sports, but surely your (junior) high school teachers and counselors have shown you the infamous charts and graphs that show how your education and the income you earn later on are directly proportional, that is, directly related.

Moreover, President Obama rightly pointed out that in this economy, “We know that the success of every American will be tied more closely than ever before to the level of education that they achieve,” because of the many changes in the economy. “The jobs will go to the people with the knowledge and the skills to do them. It’s that simple.”

Now that we’ve shared our data, we want to know what YOU think about the high school dropout issue. In 500 words or less, send us your thoughts answering any of the following questions:

1. Name, Age
2. Email address, telephone number
3. School, Grade
4. Answer (in 500 words or LESS) ONE of the following:

a. Share your story of a friend or acquaintance of yours who chose to drop out of junior high or high school:

OR

b. Why do you think students your age choose to drop out?

OR

c. Does it make sense for someone to drop out of high school if they find a career opportunity where they can quickly rise to the top (acting, singing, etc.)?

OR

d. What could teachers/schools do differently to prevent students from dropping out?

Send your answers to meaguilar@elclasificado.com before March 15, 2010, and you will be entered for a chance to win A PAIR OF CLIPPERS TICKETS just for sharing your thoughts with us… so write today!

This post is also available in: Spanish