As the school year quickly draws to a close, many of my former classmates are preparing for their sophomore year of college, while other Franklin Learning Center graduates like myself are left asking themselves what have they done with their lives in the last 365 days since their high school graduation? Students who either chose not to attend college right after graduation or who were unable to because of financial problems or any other reason might be left feeling let down or unprepared by their school system.

For 13 years straight you’re told where to go, when to go, how to dress, when to speak, and even when you can use the bathroom. Then, suddenly, you’re 18 and your future is placed in your hands and you’re told to choose. Does FLC or the modern school system in America in general prepare its students for the transition from a child who has been told what to do for the past several years of their lives to a decision making adult?

Those who majored in business or medical assistance might feel like their needs were more fittingly met. They were taught courses that were centered around their interests and future careers. They were given programs in and out of school that gave them opportunities to meet others with similar interests and put them in real life business and medical environments. These majors weren’t the only helpful courses provided by FLC. Students like myself were offered real life college courses from Arcadia University. Classes like sociology, psychology, and crime and punishment were taught to students by real college professors. What better way to prepare for college than to take a college course? But that’s just it, FLC might have met the needs of many college bound students but what about those who chose to take a different path or those who know that college was not an option at all? Let’s be honest, in today’s modern society entrepreneurship and self employment is at an all time high. So in terms of students who know that college is not for them but still want to be successful in today’s society, where do they fit into FLC’s curriculum? Undoubtedly there are many students who feel like their needs were met, but all over America there are more students than you can imagine who feel as though their school systems set them up to fail.