It’s Never Too Late to Go Back to School
Who Asked Us?
New America Media, Commentary, David Madrid, Sr., Posted: Sep 24, 2007
Editor’s Note: Some 10 years after he was lured away from high school by a full-time job, this writer heads back to get his diploma in order to get more than a dead-end job. David Madrid is an editor for Silicon Valley Debug, a project of New America Media.
SAN JOSE – I just got home from my second job, but there is no time to kick back. I only have enough time to grab a bite to eat and kiss my wife and son goodbye, before I’m right back out that door. It’s Wednesday night so I have class at the Adult Ed and I don't want to be late.
I dropped out of Independence High School mid-senior year back in 1996. Not because I was lazy or some juvenile delinquent – as the stereotypes might have you believe – but because of the pressure to work a full-time job.
The truth is – I was discouraged early on in my high school career. I transferred from East San Jose to a school in North Monterey County my freshmen year. I remember sitting in an office surrounded by blue-eyed counselors with posters on the wall that said: “Dare to Dream” and other encouraging slogans. They were there to help me plan out my high school career, and ultimately my future. They asked me what is it that I want to do with my life. I replied with stars in my eyes: “I want to help people. I want to be a youth counselor.” The room fell silent, then one of the counselors looked at me and said: "There’s too much school involved for that, why don't you pick a trade?"
And there it was, I dared to dream.
The following years up of high school were endless. I was in school all day and at work all night, with a girlfriend somewhere in between. Looking back, I wasn’t a bad student at all. I really did try. I had no problem getting to school. I completed my homework and maintained a decent grade point average. But with the lack of support and no motivation, I was destined for failure. I fell into the trap that a lot of young people from the neighborhood seem to fall in. Picking a dead end job is no different from those who choose to sell dope or steal as a means to get by. We get caught up in the here and now and tend not to think about the future.
As that job – working at a damn movie theater – came and went, along with others there after, dropping out of school became one of my biggest regrets. I remember sitting in my grandparents’ living room looking at all the graduation photos of various family members, when it hit me. I had become another statistic. I was stuck in a daze, staring at my Uncle Tony’s picture on the wall, with “Mt. Pleasant High class of 1970” written under it when my grandpa shook me up.
"Go back to school!" he said.
My grandpa was 58 years old back in 1969 when he finally received his high school diploma from the San Jose High Adult Education program. He truly embraced the value of education, coming from a generation when U.S. Latinos were treated as second-class citizens and school was a privilege not to be taken for granted. He went from a poor boy, who grew up in California’s Central Valley picking fruit and vegetables, to obtaining a contractor’s license and starting his own construction company. And it was because of his high school diploma that helped make that possible.
So I took his advice and, as the years rolled on, I did try dropping back in a couple of times. I hit up some night classes at the East Side Adult Center and I even enrolled at San Jose City College for a while. I jumped into a full week of classes. But it didn't last. It was hard for me getting into the school mode, since I’d been out of school for so long. I got overwhelmed and lost my drive.
So I kept on pushing ahead, living life figuring I don't need school. And for the most part, everything seemed to be working out. I’m now pushing 30-years-old, married with children, working two jobs I love. And – can you believe it – one of them is even being a youth counselor.
But now the road has come full circle, that little piece of paper I thought I could do without is now holding me back from stabilizing and securing my future. I have been working with a non-profit organization for the last few years contracted with the East Side Union School District as an at-risk youth counselor. I would be a perfect candidate for a possible permanent position with the school district, if only I had the proper schooling and college education.
Achieving that diploma is the first step I need to take. So I’m off to night school again at the East Side Adult Center, to finish what I started. But this time I’m gonna do it one step at a time with direction and a solid plan. I’m only down a few high school credits, so it wont be long before I get my diploma. Then I’m off to pursue my college education.
To all those in high school: Get it done the first time. And to those who have dropped out, remember it's never too late. You can never be too old to drop back into school.
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