Features

GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN: HOW WOULD IT HAVE AFFECTED US

You all have, no doubt, heard of the recent government shutdown which might have brought this nation to financial ruin.  But, thankfully, it was averted by a last minute deal in Congress.  But what might have happened to us as students if the shutdown had continued onward? Now, the shutdown may not have affected us directly, since we are not employed in government jobs.  But it would have affected school funding, student loans for college-bound seniors, and, of course, our parents.

In the first week of the government shutdown, schools were funded by money given through a grant.  However, if the shutdown persisted longer than a week, we would no doubt see our teachers losing their jobs, perhaps no internet use in our school, and even school closures.  For those of you going to college, you would have found a tough time finding assistance with student loans, as workers connected with the program would be furloughed, or temporarily laid-off from work, leaving only a handful of people to handle loan applications.

Now, we would be mainly affected by the job situation of our parents in a prolonged government shutdown.  During the shutdown the stock market went down by 600 points, which was not good news for parents who invest in the stock market.  Now imagine if the shutdown was prolonged and the U.S. defaulted on its loans.  There would be panic on Wall Street and no doubt a complete stock market crash with many investors wiped out, some of whom may be our parents.  On the job scene, parents who are government workers would be furloughed or lose their jobs altogether.  We probably all understand that would mean cutting down on spending quite a bit and it would be extremely hard on families just making ends meet.  That would mean fewer trips to the mall to buy new shoes or clothes, perhaps a cancelation of phone service, or television, or anything that may save money.  In the extreme, social security benefits to the unemployed and elderly may be cut so the government can balance its budget.  Those unemployed, some who may be our parents, would not receive any income to just get by.

Evidently, it is a relief that Congress was finally able to set aside their political platforms and vote to prevent the shutdown from continuing further, and affecting our families as a nation.  But the question is, what is Congress going to do when we find ourselves in a similar situation down the road?  The government can’t keep borrowing money forever, and the consequences may be even more severe than those that I have mentioned.
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GRADUATION ALREADY?

In 10 short months, the Brookfield High School class of 2014 will be turning the tassel to the other side of the graduation cap. High school students as a whole know that mixed emotions about their education are unavoidable, but a specific group of the student body is forced to identify and deal with these feelings come June. Students at Brookfield High School live a relatively sheltered life, but every year some of our baby birds are thrusted out of the nest. The question is: who will soar and who won’t.

Over time, graduating from high school has become almost inevitable, but being excited and ready is not. People usually hear about intense anticipation and elation of receiving the diploma and moving onto the “real world”, but in reality things are not that simple.

Nerves and anxiety often take over, about things such as college and making friends. The majority of the Brookfield High School class of 2014 has been attending school together since kindergarten. This seems normal to students here, but it’s not so common and it may make it harder to move onto a college where people haven’t known each other since they were seven.  Students complain about seeing the same people day after day year after year, but by the time twelfth grade comes around many start to realize that they’ll miss the comfort of familiarity. Seniors begin to realize that good friends may be lost or drift away due to going to different colleges and living in different cities.

Many graduating seniors are scared for a large portion of the year because they don’t yet know what the future holds. A large portion of the anxiety that is felt stems from college plans. Nicole Biondi, a senior at Brookfield high school, demonstrated this anxiety when she said “I am excited even though I don’t know what I want to do with my life”. There are students that feel that they’re completely alone in their inability to decide what they want to pursue in life, but just by walking through the halls of BHS it is easy to see that these students are anything but alone. There is a constant buzz of college talk, from “where do you want to go?” to “do you think I’ll get in?”. The guidance office of Brookfield High School starts off college talk the very first week of school, and sets up meetings within the first month. BHS counselors make sure that college guidance is just an email away.

Then, there are those students who truly cannot wait to escape the grips that high school has had on them for the past  four years of their lives. An abundant amount of seniors are highly anticipating college due to the glorified “college lifestyle”. Many television or film representations of college unrealistically portray college as one, big party. Real life cases of that being the reality for someone’s college experience often come along with failing grades and academic probation. It’s great to be excited to graduate and move on to the next chapter in life, but it should be for the right reason. Rachel Kovacs, a graduating senior at Brookfield High School, declares that she “cannot wait to leave and go somewhere else”. She has everything figured out, she wants to major in psychology and get a degree in school counseling. She is excited for college not because she can’t wait to party or be out all night, but because she gets to pursue her passion. Be excited, but be realistic.

When asked how he felt about graduating, class of 2014 senior Steve Delvalle responded with “I don’t want to grow up”. By graduation day, a typical student will have spent a large majority of their life attending school. In less than a year, high school seniors will lose a big part of their lives and it’s normal to be scared about that. Graduating signifies moving on. With a diploma comes real responsibilities and important decisions that influence one’s entire future. It’s not easy and recognizing that can be very beneficial.

Here at Brookfield High School, mixed feelings about graduation are truly unavoidable. Graduating and moving onto whatever may come next is bittersweet, but it’s important to keep in mind that there are hundreds of thousands of teenagers around the world that are feeling the exact same way.