My Mental Health & Career Development

 A part of why people will not speak publicly about their mental health issues is that they fear in the social media age, employers would find out and assume

• this guy might explode at the first sign of resistance
• this guy might feel overwhelmed and get an anxiety attack at even the slightest inconvenience

Obviously, those sound like exaggerations, but in the age where employers can look you up online, most job-seekers just won't take any chances. 

But then again, just as employers have to screen out applicants,  applicants should also screen out employers that just won't work out for them.

It's hard when one is desperate for an opportunity to pay the bills.

At the same time, one has to protect one's mental health as much as possible. 

=========

So here I am admitting that I am receiving mental health services on issues related to employment.

I'm in my 40s, I have been an adult for 2 decades, and I have 2 decades more until I can retire.  At the same time, my parents are in their 70s.  The clock is ticking. 

Most of my adult life, I worked as a substitute teacher. 

•   pros: flexible scheduling when school is in session. 
• cons: no work available during school breaks

Because of the cons, I have been looking for something more long-term. I did consider becoming a full-time teacher but I figured the workload will be too stressful for me.  I decided to go the library route, got a degree in Library & Information Science, and eventually landed a full-time library assistant job at a middle school. I left that job in 2020 due to problems with the head librarian. I wrote about it at https://pwegesen.wixsite.com/kalakaua-ms-library 

2020 was also the pandemic year. I did a few side jobs, then I worked at Macy's. I already had previous stints in fashion retail (both Macy's and Nordstrom Rack).  But fashion retail isn't something I want to do for the rest of my life.  

And Macy's does a bait & switch their employees. I applied to do recovery (organizing stuff on the sales floor) but I got switched to sanitizing hi-touch points (easy job, but seen as "low status" by the general public). Then when the mask mandate ended in the spring of  2022, Macy's decided to do away with hi-touch sanitizing.

The geniuses at Macy's thought it would be a good idea to switch me to "back of house support" which has plusses (organizing incoming materials, which I love doing) and minuses (working with machines, which I hate doing). After a few weeks, I had a discussion with them, telling them they are negligent about workplace safety, I told them I'll go to OSHA, and I told them they should've asked me if  I liked working with machines before switching me to a position involving machines. After that, they switched me to "front-of-house support duties" (folding towels and clothes, replenishing the shelves, etc) which was what I should've been doing the whole time because that's where I excel.  But now the new problem is the reduction of work hours.

So time to move on. I did apply to return to substitute teaching. I applied to work at an afterschool program.  I also applied for library and office positions. 

I landed a temp office position with the Department of Health. The easy part was organizing the items in the offices. I could do that in my sleep.  The problem is the direct supervisor is disorganized, only gives oral instructions, and doesn't believe in written guidelines. Even worse, on a day that had more work assignments than usual, the supervisor told me "don't write, just listen" as if I'm supposed to remember everything. At that point, I had a nervous breakdown.  I told her I work better with written guidelines, and she refused to accommodate me on that. I left and I sent an email telling her how inefficient she is as a supervisor. Learn more at https://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2023/02/when-working-at-department-of-health-is.html

That was in January of this year.

I knew it was time. 

It was time to do 2 things

• find new work
• apply for mental health services 

 I wasn't unemployed for long because I had something to fall back on.  I did reapply the previous year to work as a substitute teacher under Kelly Services.  And in January, I also reapplied to work as a sub with another private agency Hi-Employment. With both agencies, I can work with private schools, charter schools, preschools, and even some Head Start sites.

As for the DOE, I didn't reapply this time around. They take too long with job applications (the private agencies do background checks much faster) and even worse, take longer to pay employees. With the private agencies, I get paid next week Friday. With the DOE (or any state agency), I have to wait until the following month for my paycheck. I'd rather not wait.

I am very grateful that Kelly Services and HiEmployment are willing to hire me. When there's an issue, I can email them, and they are very responsive to my concerns.  And I have been able to pick up many work assignments with them.

And I feel like I'm back in my element when I'm substitute teaching. Believe it or not, it's actually easier than working in retail.  But still, when working with kids, the job requires split-second decisions and any wrong move can have consequences.  But even with that pressure, it's still easier than retail. 

This time, I'll just stick with elementary and preschool when it comes to subbing. I used to do a lot of middle schools but rarely did high schools.  The problem with secondary schools is that even if (for example) 4/ 5 of the classes went smoothly, the other 1/5 is usually so bad that it ruins the day big time, and I rather not deal with that drama at this point in my life.  Plus, I connect better with the younger kids anyways.

I was a middle school library assistant which was much easier than subbing in middle school classrooms. So if I ever work in a middle/high school again, it would be a library job.  Other than that, no!

Mental health services

As mentioned earlier, in January I applied for mental health services when it comes to issues related to employment. 

My mom actually suggested it late last year. This year, no more waiting. 

The following is what I shared with the mental health professionals about my mental health and my career development

Career-Related Strengths

·       2 degrees (sociology, library & information science)

·       Likes to organize items (both physical and digital)

·       Loves to write (better than speaking)

·       Basic computer skills (documents, spreadsheets, information searching)

·       Works well when given lists, templates, flow-charts, other charts, other visuals

·       Can make visual displays

·       Can connect with children [if they're well-behaved 😉 ]

·       13 years sub teaching

·       Strong interest in social studies

·       Willing to share opinions

·       Willing to help others

·       Able to move boxes

·       Arrive early (at least half-hour), nearly always

Career Related Weaknesses

·       Don’t like being rushed

·       Get overwhelmed if being asked to do too much at once

·       Can only take a limited amount of disrespect, especially from other staff

·       Anger, irritable, easily agitated

·       Harder time learning skills (can learn facts faster) and need repetitions & gentle instructions before mastering

·       Don’t like heavy machinery

·       Don’t drive, don’t like long commutes

·       Can’t stand food service work

·       Speech impediments (mumbles, talk fast)

·       Hard to share concerns orally without writing it out first

·       Don’t like wearing earpieces (learn more at this link)

·       Can’t stand anti-maskers

·       Haven’t been able to establish seniority

·       Difficulty finding a long-term, year-round stable career that I’m willing to remain in.

 

Career History (cliff notes version) (not in chronological order because they overlap in many ways):

·       Temp office assistant (w/DOH) (left recently after only 4 weeks)

·       Just returned to substitute teaching, which I did for 13 years (2005-2018)  (pros: flexible scheduling when school is in session. cons: no work available during school breaks)

·        worked in libraries : mostly in student helper positions as an undergrad, plus internship and Library Assistant for a middle school

·       Brief stints as a tutor for students in Special Ed

·       Summer program (2005-2006)

·       Afterschool program (late 2022)

·       fashion retail employee (Macy’s, Nordstrom Rack)

·       Various temp jobs (inspect ballots, test mobile devices, sign waving, election day precinct official, traffic data collector, manual labor)

·       UH dorm front desk (2000-2002)

·       Friends of the Library volunteer

·       Side hustle: electronic music, visual art  (for sale online)

So I had appointments to speak with a mental health professional about these issues. In fact, earlier today, I had another counseling session to discuss these issues.

We're nowhere near done, but we did discuss the following today

• I did some have good temp jobs in the past, the problem is that they're temp
• Library jobs are a good fit, the problem is people don't want to leave those positions, and I have to wait for someone to retire before a position opens up
• When it comes to clerical work, organizing stuff is (usually) easy for me. The problem is having to do call-center duties, which would be too overwhelming for me
• substitute teaching is a very good fit for me, the problem is there's no paid vacation or sick leave
• I'm very selective in applying for positions so that I don't waste interviewing for positions that aren't a good match for me
• it would be a good idea to apply for teaching assistant positions when possible. Just know if it's a good fit before applying
• When applying for positions, the job listings usually list the generic criteria (especially true for state positions)  but when interviewing for the specific position, what the employer is looking for is usually more specific than the generic criteria listed in the initial job posting
• When it comes to those kinds of interviews, I sometimes aced certain questions (because they match my previous experience) but as soon as they ask about something I have no previous experience with, the vibe of the room changes
• When writing cover letters or doing the interview, I'm going to be more upfront about what works for me (ie. written guidelines, polite instructions, etc). This is to inform the employer ahead of time of how to best guide me, and also to weed out employers that don't want to make those accommodations.

For the last point, I forgot to mention in today's session that I'll be upfront in informing employers I'll be wearing a surgical mask and face shield. Employers that want to hire covidiots can hire someone else instead. 

If I have more time, I could come up with more issues that we discussed.

So I'm writing all this to help everyone understand the position I'm in. Also to help those who might have similar struggles that I'm dealing with. 

And if employers see this, what they do with this information is up to them.  I just want to be upfront about my strengths, my weakness, what works for me, and what doesn't work for me. 

So & So Said This About You: DON'T TELL ME THAT!

On YouTube yesterday, I posted  a video speech titled 

"So & So Said This About You: DON'T TELL ME THAT!"

In this video speech, I explain why it's NOT a good idea to tell others "so & so said this about you".

I mentioned about the time I told two friends who had a conflict what they said about each other behind their backs, and how that escalated a conflict that would've faded had I not told them what they said about each other behind their backs.

Then I mentioned about a time when somebody told me "this person said this about you" and how it made me angry at somebody who I never interacted with before.

So the whole point is telling others "so & so said this about you" does nothing but escalates problems.

you can learn more by watching the video here

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOFCytXpSVQ

==================

and guess what?

You can now go on RedBubble and buy some cool merch that allows you to tell the word : 

"So & So Said This About You: DON'T TELL ME THAT!"

The RedBubble link is at https://www.redbubble.com/shop/ap/143261106

and here are some T-shirts that you can wear declaring to the world

"So & So Said This About You: DON'T TELL ME THAT!"

and it's not just T-shirts or other apparel, it's all kinds of stuff

.... bags, blankets, pillows, mugs, masks & more

Get it all on RedBubble at https://www.redbubble.com/shop/ap/143261106

The closing of Downtown Honolulu Walmart

 Yesterday, it was announced that the Walmart located in Downtown Honolulu will be closing next month.

That was my favorite Walmart! 

  It wasn't as big & overwhelming as the one on Keʻeaumoku (near Ala Moana) but still had enough stuff to satisfy my shopping needs!

It was very convenient in that I didn't have to walk as far to the nearest bus stop.

Whereas for the one on Keʻeaumoku, I have to walk like 2 blocks to the bus stop I need to get home. Imagine having to walk with 2 full shopping bags.

(yes, there's a bus stop directly in front of the Keʻeaumoku store, but the buses that stop there don't go to my home)

And to add insult to injury, after the closing of the Downtown Honolulu Walmart, there will be no public restrooms left in the area.  For some people, that was THE main reason to go to that Walmart.  

If there are no public restrooms left in downtown, then why should I go to the other shops in the area?

==========

The other question is  ....is that location bad luck.

Before the downtown Walmart opened in 2014, the space was occupied by Liberty House, which later became Macy's!  Both of which provided public restrooms.

If Macy's couldn't last, and Walmart couldn't last there, who could?

It's bad enough some of the other nearby businesses have closed. The Walgreens and Longs on nearby Hotel Street have shut down.

There's still Fisher's Hawaii (which focuses on school & office supplies) and Daiso (which focuses on Japanese imports), but how long will they last in an area that lacks public restrooms?

And while downtown is known for being the business headquarters for Hawaii, it has also become the center of homelessness. 

Downtown Walmart is just walking distance from Hotel Street! Hotel Street (which used to have hotels before Waikiki became THE tourist magnet) is now a code word for the "mentally ill people who rant & rave & scream  profanities for no known reason."

That's what downtown Honolulu has become known for. 

People tend to avoid the area unless they work or live nearby. I mostly come for Walmart! 

And Lord knows how many former downtown workers are now working from home.

And when people with money stop coming to downtown, then more businesses will struggle, even perish! 

And if more businesses shut down, the area could become a ghost town. Sad!

Learn more at

Dan Nakaso, “Walmart Closing Downtown Honolulu Store,” Honolulu Star-Advertiser,  March 21, 2023,                                                                 https://www.staradvertiser.com/2023/03/21/breaking-news/walmart-shuttering-downtown-honolulu-store/.

Dan Nakaso , “Closure of Last Big Downtown Retailer, Walmart, Prompts Fears,” Honolulu Star-Advertiser, March 22, 2023,                     https://www.staradvertiser.com/2023/03/22/hawaii-news/closure-of-last-big-downtown-retailer-prompts-fears/.

The ever-changing definition of woke

 It is normal for words to have their publicly known meanings change over time.  I mean, we sure aren't using words the same they were used in Old English times.

But the word "woke" has gained many definitions in the last few decades. 

The meaning of "woke" gained special attention recently when author Bethany Mandel was at a loss for words when an interviewer asked for the meaning of the word "woke".

Yes, being at a loss for words can happen to even the best of us.

But here's my interpretation of the ever-changing definitions of the word "woke".

The word "woke" was used among African-American activists to symbolize waking up from all the Eurocentric brainwashing imposed on them from the times of slavery.

It is to be woken up from all the brainwashing imposed by an educational system that has long emphasized the achievements of Europeans and their descendants while neglecting the proud history of Africa before and after European colonization. 

It is to be woken up from all the brainwashing from racist propaganda that treated Africans as savages while neglecting to mention the intellectual traditions that long existed in sub-Saharan Africa!

It is to be woken up from the brainwashing that disrespected African traditions, African cultural norms, African hairstyles, and African physical features. 

It is to be woken up from self-hatred caused by a white supremacist society that tells you that you are inferior! 

And while "woke" is a term that originated among African-Americans, many of the same issues have affected other non-European groups who also strive to be wakened up from the Eurocentric brainwashing from the colonialism imposed on them! 

If waking up from all this degrading Eurocentric brainwashing is being woke, then I strive to be woke.

However, some people have woken up from one form brainwashing and end up falling for another sort of brainwashing.

It is this new brainwashing that claims

• every white person is a racist, every man is a rapist
• Those of non-European ancestries can't be racist because "racism is about structural power"
• Judging those of non-European ancestries by the content of their character is "racist"
• All policing, even arresting violent criminals, is "racist"
• Anti-Asian and Anti-Jewish hate crimes shall only be taken seriously when committed by those of European ancestry. Using police to stop anti-Asian and anti-Jewish hate crimes committed by African-Americans (or other non-Europeans) is "racist"
• Standardized tests are "racist" and expecting people of all ancestries to reach the same academic standards is "racist"
• Anyone of pure-European ancestry (or who looks that way) who participate in anything related to non-European cultures is guilty of "cultural appropriation" (which is a major sin above all sins)
• Any disagreement with far-left activists of non-European ancestry can only be rooted in racism

It is those who fit the above description that are commonly described as "woke" by right-wing conservatives who once mocked them as "social justice warriors" ("sjw" for short) a decade ago!

But you can't really be woke if you traded one sort of brainwashing for another. 

So if you believe that "all white people are racist" and "non-whites can't be racist because racism is about structural power", I don't consider you to be truly woke, you are only Allegedly "woke"! Yes, with the quotation marks around "woke"! 

I take this "judge by the content of one character" very literally! 

If you have good character, then I can't judge you by the negative actions of those who look like you.

If you have negative character and you don't apologize or make sincere amends, then I'm going to have negative judgments about your character!  That you suffered in life doesn't negate any negative judgments towards your negative actions. 

If we are all equal, then we are capable of equal good and equal bad. 

If you understand that, then you are truly woke.

Now look at this  quote from Nelson Mandela, a  REAL social justice warrior, a real hero who has waken up South Africa from white supremacy

During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people. I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.

Now, THAT is woke! 

He wasn't about replacing white domination with black domination!

He was about replacing oppression with freedom for all!

He wasn't about hating the white man, he was about hating white supremacy! 

He wanted a world where all South Africans can live in harmony! 

And the thing is many allegedly "woke" activists on social media today HAVE IT EASY compared to what Nelson Mandela had to deal with while fighting against apartheid! 

 He was separated from his family for 27 years and lived under harsh conditions while imprisoned, and yet he never gave up hope for a more just society!

When he was finally given a chance to lead his country, he emphasized peace and harmony among all South Africans. 

That should be the goal of all activists, of all ancestries, in all places! 

--------

Now let's look at this quote from Martin Luther King "I Have a Dream" speech

“I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.”

Notice that he didn't say "we want to punish all the sons of  former slave owners for the sins of ancestors"

Notice that he didn't say "no sons of former slave owners shall ever participate in art forms started by the sons of former slaves"

No, he wanted all the descendants of slaves and slave owners to move beyond past prejudices and learn to treat each other like family! 

This is not sugar-coating Martin Luther King, that is the REAL Martin Luther King! 

Like Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King was the real woke! 

Let's all become the real woke!

notes on recent deaths

 (note: the deaths of the following people occurred weeks ago, but time limits kept me from writing them earlier)

1.) Tracy Ryan

Tracy Ryan was a person ahead of her time. 

She was a transgender activist who advocated for sex worker's rights and for drug legalization, back in an era where even many Democrats were too afraid to advocate for same-sex marriage, marijuana legalization, and the decriminalization of prostitution. 

She was the head of Hawaii's Libertarian Party and even ran for governor!

I first knew of her in the early 2000's, when I was a college undergrad and was interested in the libertarian movement. While I was attending the University of Hawaii at Manoa, I had a friend who was attending Hawaii Pacific University which had a pro-libertarian Reason Club. I attended a few of their meetings (usually some bull sessions at a coffee shop) and attended a few Libertarian Party events where Tracy Ryan spoke. 

I haven't been to any libertarian event in over a decade, and while I still agree with Ryan's main issues of advocacy (ie LGBT rights,  sex worker rights, drug legalization), I have distanced myself from much of the libertarian movement because too many other activists don't chose their battles wisely.

That being said, Hawaii, and the world is a better place because of activists like Tracy Ryan

Learn more at  https://obits.staradvertiser.com/2023/02/19/tracy-ahn-ryan-19022023/

Begley, J., & Blair, C. (2023, February 23). Honoring The Life And Work Of Activist Tracy Ryan. Honolulu Civil Beat.                                                                                                                                     https://www.civilbeat.org/2023/02/honoring-the-life-and-work-of-activist-tracy-ryan/

David Nahinu Jr.

David Nahinu was a classmate in my 8th-grade homeroom class at Kawananakoa Middle School. This was back in 1994-1995!

I only knew of Nahinu for a very short time, since we ended up going to different high schools. I went to McKinley High School (should be renamed Honolulu High School) while he went to Roosevelt High School. 

But those memories of 8th-grade homeroom was one of the funniest memories. 

During downtime, we had the TV on, and it was sometimes tuned to MTV (back when they played music videos) and David would make funny jokes about the videos. He would even catcall when Adina Howard's video "Freak Like Me" was on! 

He would also joke around with people, but always in a positive way.

I even remember one time I was walking the hallways, he was like "anybody there causing problems?", I was like "I'm good". Maybe I should've called him for backup when there was actual problems. Too bad we ended up in different high schools.

Decades later, I tried finding David Nahinu on social media. I contacted someone on Facebook with the same name, but it wasn't the same one I knew. 

Then earlier this year, one of my other former middle school classmates mentioned on Facebook that Daivd Nahinu passed away. He mentioned some positive things about him, and showed pictures of him over the years (damn, he lost all his belly fat since I last saw him!)

With those memorials from his friends, I wished he was on Facebook and I wish I had the chance to meet him again during adulthood. 

a brief obituary

https://www.hawaiianmemorialparkmortuary.com/obituaries/David-Nahinu/#!/Obituary

non-binary games (part 2)

 Back in late 2020, I wrote my first "non-binary games" blog post.

https://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2020/12/non-binary-games.html 

I mentioned the controversy of transgender athletes playing on female events and the size disparity of transgender athletes vs cis-gender female athletes.

Then I mentioned this

I'm tempted to say let's have a non-binary category for sports, so that there's male sports events, female sports events, and non-binary sports events.  That might be simple for individual sports like track, swimming, or mixed-martial arts, but it gets more complicated for team sports. At most schools, there's most likely not enough non-binary students to fill a basketball team, and even more unlikely to have enough for a tackle football team. Probably the best case scenario would be to combine non-binary students from nearby schools to make a basketball team. 

I did come across a great blog post today from a father and his experience with his daughter playing against a team with a transgender athlete

Rhein, Walter. "My Daughter Played Basketball Against a Transgender Girl and This Is What Happened." Medium. March 10, 2023.                                                     https://aninjusticemag.com/my-daughter-played-basketball-against-a-transgender-girl-and-this-is-what-happened-a011c6d0130e

At one of my daughter’s non-competitive tournaments, she went up against a team that had a transgender girl, and…

IT WAS TOTALLY FINE! There was no problem at all. The little girl was out there having fun with her teammates and she felt accepted and loved. I approved of her participation 100%.

and this

When you talk to authoritarians, they always act like a transgender basketball player will be a seven-foot-tall, 300-pound mass of raging testosterone who utterly dominates.

That wasn’t my experience at all.

The girl my daughter played against was the smallest player on the court. Actually, she didn’t handle the ball very well. Kids commit a lot of turnovers in middle school basketball. Who cares?

She tried her best and always had a big smile on her face. She was clearly having fun.

She obviously felt accepted and was a valued member of the team. 

and the article gets even better

For some reason, people in the United States can’t seem to understand that the transgender athlete might not be the best player on the court. The discussion is fixated on one type of player and absolutely fails to recognize any diversity in skill levels.

I didn’t put my daughter in girl’s basketball to dominate. I put her in there so she could be part of a team.

Only one team wins the championship. For every other player on every other team, it’s just a bonding experience.

Detractors are fixated on a scenario that is statistically irrelevant. We have to expand our viewpoint to include the whole picture.

“But what about…”

Authoritarians say nonsense like, “But what about later in life? What about when your daughter is competing to win the state title? What if she gets physically dominated by a player who was born a male? What if that stops her from getting a scholarship? Do you see? We’re the ones who really care about your daughter! Not you! We are the ones who know what’s best!”

That’s how they justify walking onto the court of a 3rd-grade girl’s basketball game and physically dragging the smallest player away. That’s how they justify sending that child home to bury her face in her pillow and cry herself to sleep.

One could make the case that cross-dressing in his free time didn't stop Dennis Rodman from dominating in men's basketball, so "why can't all the transgender athletes do that?"

But you know what? If a transgender athlete wants to play on a woman's team, let them.

I mean, I'm an average-sized male, but there have always been female athletes who were way better than me in PE. 

If those female athletes can handle me in PE, then the top female athletes in high school could definitely handle playing against a transgender athlete for an entire game. 

I think we'll eventually get used to seeing a transgender athlete playing on female teams.

Transgender (or others in the non-binary category) are only a tiny percentage of the population, so they're not going to drive the overwhelming majority of female athletes out of competitive sports. 

===

The only thing that might still be awkward could be in the locker room where people have to shower and change clothes.

But I believe ALL LOCKER ROOMS should have private stalls to give privacy to anyone while showering and changing clothes. 

I mean, I'm an average male, and I don't even like showering or changing in front of other males, or anybody else. I want privacy and so should everyone else!

I wrote about the locker room and private stalls at 

https://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2016/05/private-locker-room-stalls.html

and about gender-neutral restrooms at

http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2016/05/gender-neutral-restrooms.html

The decline of college?

 Back in 2012, I predicted that higher education could be the next industry to go bust (face a major decline)

https://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2012/07/college-reform.html 

Just like there was a tech-bust in the early 2000's and the even more devastating housing-bust of 2008, there has been a prediction that higher education is the next industry to face a sharp decline!

Greater expenses, a slow economy and more exposure to stories of recent grads struggling have been causing the next generation to be more reluctant to attend college!

Colleges can only raise tuition so much, otherwise less students will attend.

Loan agencies struggling to receive pay-backs from struggling graduates can easily lead them to bankruptcy! Once that happens, there will be less sources for college loans, less financial aid available!

And the next generation might think "college? too much humbug, why bother?"

All that will hit all the colleges hard!

Guess what?

That time has arrived!

According to an Associated Press article, more and more young adults are skipping college and choose to go straight into the work world!

And it's not just the slackers, even some of the high-achieving students are opting out of college.

 Collin Binkley, “Jaded with Education, More Americans Are Skipping College,” Yahoo! News, March 8, 2023                                                                     https://news.yahoo.com/jaded-education-more-americans-skipping-050531419.html

Hart is among hundreds of thousands of young people who came of age during the pandemic but didn’t go to college. Many have turned to hourly jobs or careers that don’t require a degree, while others have been deterred by high tuition and the prospect of student debt.

What first looked like a pandemic blip has turned into a crisis. Nationwide, undergraduate college enrollment dropped 8% from 2019 to 2022, with declines even after returning to in-person classes, according to data from the National Student Clearinghouse. The slide in the college-going rate since 2018 is the steepest on record, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

just one of many examples from the article

Before the pandemic, Boone Williams was the type of student colleges compete for. He took advanced classes and got A's. He grew up around agriculture and thought about going to college for animal science.

But when his school outside Nashville sent students home his junior year, he tuned out. Instead of logging on for virtual classes, he worked at local farms, breaking horses or helping with cattle.

“I stopped applying myself once COVID came around,” the 20-year-old said. “I was focusing on making money rather than going to school.”

When a family friend told him about union apprenticeships, he jumped at the chance to get paid for hands-on work while mastering a craft.

And now some politicians are looking at removing the college degree requirement at various state jobs.

Here's an example mentioned in the NY Times. 

New York Times Editorial Board. "See Workers as Workers, Not as a College Credential." New York Times. March 8, 2023.                          https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/28/opinion/jobs-college-degree-requirement.html

Making college more affordable is important, but there are other keys to the doors of opportunity as well. With an executive order issued on Jan. 18, his first full day as governor, Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania used one of them: He eliminated the requirement of a four-year college degree for the vast majority of jobs in the state government, a change similar to one that Maryland and Utah made last year.

 

and this 

His move opens up 92 percent of state government jobs — approximately 65,000 positions — to anyone with “the relevant work experience and skills-based training, regardless of their educational attainment.” Job postings will emphasize experience over education.

The nonprofit organization Opportunity@Work has been promoting the idea of skills- and experience-based hiring since 2015. It estimates that 50 percent of the American work force comprises workers who have gained their skills through alternative routes such as apprenticeships, military service, trade schools, certificate programs and on-the-job training rather than acquiring bachelor’s degrees — a deep pool of underutilized and undercompensated talent. If employers don’t have a strategy for engaging this pool, said Byron Auguste, the group’s chief executive and co-founder, “they don’t have a talent strategy — they only have half a talent strategy.”

 

I have mixed feelings about all this!

I do agree that work-experience should count when applying for more advanced opportunities too!  A lack of college degree doesn't always mean a lack of comptence!  If a person has a proven track record for the responsibilities, then that person should be deemed qualified for the job.

However, I am a college graduate and I do feel college can be an amazing experience beyond just getting a diploma. I definitely feel that those who can go should.

I loved the college life. I loved going to classes. I loved having discussions inside and outside of class. I loved meeting people on campus inside and outside of class. I love the cafeterias on campus. And the libraries were my second home. And when I needed a break from the library, the campus has its quiet spots to rest & chill!

And I definitely loved the events (well, at least before the pandemic made crowded events awkward).

But I can't totally blame those who feel they can better support their families by going directly into the workforce after high school. And the horror stories of people struggling with student loan debt are making more people say "No thanks" to college.

The article doesn't mention this, but you don't have to be in your late teens or early 20s to start college.

Many people start their young adulthood in the work world and decided later on that it's time to go back to school.

Some of those who didn't take education seriously during adolescence do decide in their 30s (or even later) that now they're ready to go back to school. And they come back with a new sense of maturity and eagerness that they didn't have before.

Here's one example of that, this being a testimonial from Tina Oh, who started college later in adulthood with a new eagerness to learn that she admits wasn't there during adolescence.

Tina Oh . "The Scholarship Motivated Me." University of Hawaii Foundation. August 3, 2018.                                                                     https://www.uhfoundation.org/impact/students/scholarship-motivated-me

My advice for anyone walking my path is to put in the work. Never give up. Believe in yourself. In English 21-22, we had to memorize words and definitions. “I know nothing,” I said. “My education stopped in ninth grade.” I got index cards, and I just studied them over and over and over. That’s how I built my study habits, and later, when I was taking other classes, after my mommy duties, I would sit there and study no matter what, and it became a habit.

Today, I’m in my second semester at UH Mānoa in the human development and family studies program. I just started in June; I had to drop down to half time again because of my new job. I don’t want to stop my education, so I have to do what I have to do for now.

I work for the Hawaii Health & Harm Reduction Center, doing homeless outreach. I connect homeless people to housing, or I take them to a treatment center. Two weeks ago, we put 17 people into shelters.

In other words, I'm not ready to give up on those who are opting out of college right after high school! 

At the same time, I definitely believe that we need to make college more affordable so that those who want to go can go!

If I had a magic wand, I would make all state colleges (from community colleges all the way up to the universities) free for all state residents. And also provide them grants for living expenses while attending, that way, they can focus on academics and not have to worry about survival. 

(Those who want to go out-of-state or go to private colleges can still find scholarship opportunities.)

But for those who want to opt-out of college, I respect their right to do that too!

There's more than one path to success and college isn't the only one.