A while back I posted about a kid from my son’s class who died of suicide right at the beginning of the school year. I mentioned that while we had no idea why this happened, the stresses of this area couldn’t have helped.
His father has since posted publicly about the stress that the college admissions/recruiting process created for his son.
A quote:
"Dylan wasn’t a depressed teen. At all. I describe him as the exact opposite, he over-indexed on positivity. Yet, in the days leading up to his death, he was noticeably distressed.
- Concerned he wasn’t taking enough AP classes.
- Worried his 4.1 GPA wasn’t high enough.
- Irritated with the superficial self-reflection of the Common App.
- Agitated there weren’t enough conversations with D1 college coaches to play water polo.
We lose too many young souls to impulsive acts. It feels hard to convey to a teen who doesn’t yet have context for a complex adult life that the overwhelm they feel in their moment is fleeting."
I don’t quite know what to say – except that collectively, we bear a responsibility to help our kids gain perspective about this process and its significance, and it probably starts with us retaining perspective. Our kids are more than their “stats” and there are enough college opportunities out there for all of them.
In short – let’s reject the elite college industrial complex and all of the anxiety that it sparks for people who have every reason to be hopeful. We can do better by our kids.
Link edited out by moderator to comply with ToS
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