Rush at OU

[Blue Skies]

In high school, this student ran into numerous problems with his teachers. His homework was turned in late, or never. He skipped many, many classes. Worst of all, he used up all of his high school's computer time. And as we know, he was a college dropout.

Bill Gates.

I teach urban, at-risk students, and I know to a certainty exactly how hard the motivated students among them fight to get an education. Those students overcome long, long odds. They well deserve all the breaks they get.

There are gifted students in all strata of society. Are we identifying them properly, and giving them the opportunites they need to succeed?

I'm not convinced.

The Texas 10% law is well-meaning, but I find it wanting. Grades aren't everything. A 4.0 student pleased every teacher she ever had. A 3.8 student may have butted heads with someone on the faculty...who was this student, and why did it happen? Do we even care anymore? Do we value originality, or do we all just have to say, "Moo!" and fit in with the rest of the herd?

*in an ornery mood tonight*

[breathesgelatin]

I'm still surprised so many of you won't drive to Tech! I guess it's because so many people I knew drove to W&L? W&L was close to me (3 hours, closer than a lot of schools in NC would have been), but I had tons of friends who drove to the NYC area (~10 hrs) and even more friends from Texas and Louisiana at W&L... who obviously had to drive. Just a different context, I guess.

I drive to Lubbock frequently (my boyfriend grew up there), but it's only 6-7 hours from Austin.

[gee_ess]

Originally Posted by Blue Skies

The Texas 10% law is well-meaning, but I find it wanting. Grades aren't everything. A 4.0 student pleased every teacher she ever had. A 3.8 student may have butted heads with someone on the faculty...who was this student, and why did it happen? Do we even care anymore? Do we value originality, or do we all just have to say, "Moo!" and fit in with the rest of the herd?

*in an ornery mood tonight*

I understand what you mean completely. I taught high school for many years in public school and became so disillusioned with the "perfect behavior means the perfect student" mentality.

Teaching and being an advocate for your students is tough. Hang in there, Christmas break is right around the corner!

[PeppyGPhiB]

Originally Posted by Blue Skies

In high school, this student ran into numerous problems with his teachers. His homework was turned in late, or never. He skipped many, many classes. Worst of all, he used up all of his high school's computer time. And as we know, he was a college dropout.

Bill Gates.

I teach urban, at-risk students, and I know to a certainty exactly how hard the motivated students among them fight to get an education. Those students overcome long, long odds. They well deserve all the breaks they get.

There are gifted students in all strata of society. Are we identifying them properly, and giving them the opportunites they need to succeed?

I get what you're saying, but Bill Gates went to The Lakeside School, arguably (but not really) the best school in Seattle. A huge percentage of the school's students are named National Merit Semifinalists/Scholars every year. And Bill G. still got in to Harvard, despite the shortcomings you mention.

All of this talk makes me wonder, with so many kids not getting into their state's flagship university, are they considering private schools before they choose an out-of-state public university? For some of those kids, it actually may be cheaper to go to a private school! I know my private school in California always has A TON of Texas kids.

[UHDEEGEE]

Originally Posted by PeppyGPhiB

All of this talk makes me wonder, with so many kids not getting into their state's flagship university, are they considering private schools before they choose an out-of-state public university? For some of those kids, it actually may be cheaper to go to a private school! I know my private school in California always has A TON of Texas kids.

I can only answer based on my son's situation and what he is looking for in his college experience. First, he wants a large university (over 10,000 students) because his high school has over 3,500 students and as he told me when I mentioned a much smaller, private college, "Mom, I want to go to college, not the high school version."

Second, the college he chooses must obviously, offer his major of choice. He knows that he wants Engineering, but is undecided on the specific area. There is only one large private university in Texas that we have found that offers a "full range" of Engineering options; most only offer Mechanical, Electrical and/or Computer. The one private university that does have numerous options costs $46,000 per year. He can go to any one of his out of state choices for half that, even paying full out of state fees. Based on his ACT and SAT scores, though, we have already been told by 2 of his choices that he's pretty much assured scholarship money (actually, one is already guaranteed when he applies).

Third, he wants a college that has an active Greek system. He's heard way too many "glory day" stories by both Mom & Dad.

Fourth, his dad feels VERY strongly about DS attending a university with a good national reputation. This usually translates into more high quality potential employers recruiting on the campus.

This kid is my one and only and the thought of sending him someplace that is a 9-10 hour drive away makes me extremely anxious. I wold LOVE to find a university in Texas that offers everything that would satisfy all three of us, and as a native Texan, it saddens me to say that nothing that we've seen in Texas can compare with what we have seen outside of our state.

[drgnlady]

There is a larger problem in Texas than the top 10% rule and that is the lack of tier 1 universities. In a state of our size to only have 2 public top tier schools is sad. Add to that fact that they're both behemoths and our students choices are limited. My daughter graduated in the top 10% last year but had no interest in a mega-school. Her SAT scores weren't quite enough to get her into Rice (even if we agreed to pay that tuition - yikes!) so she had to look out-of-state. She wanted the whole package of a larger (10 - 20 K) university with demanding academics, Div. I sports and a traditional Greek system. My solution is to get the state to put more effort and money into bringing up our other wonderful universities so that more of our top 10% consider them. It is a real solution that other states understand. Really and truly, not every student in TX wants to be an Aggie or a Longhorn.

[epchick]

Originally Posted by drgnlady

There is a larger problem in Texas than the top 10% rule and that is the lack of tier 1 universities. In a state of our size to only have 2 public top tier schools is sad. Add to that fact that they're both behemoths and our students choices are limited. My daughter graduated in the top 10% last year but had no interest in a mega-school. Her SAT scores weren't quite enough to get her into Rice (even if we agreed to pay that tuition - yikes!) so she had to look out-of-state. She wanted the whole package of a larger (10 - 20 K) university with demanding academics, Div. I sports and a traditional Greek system. My solution is to get the state to put more effort and money into bringing up our other wonderful universities so that more of our top 10% consider them. It is a real solution that other states understand. Really and truly, not every student in TX wants to be an Aggie or a Longhorn.

That is true! We actually discussed this in another thread (about Texas recruitment), here is the link:

http://www.greekchat.com/gcforums/sh...=93223&page=11