Students who Step Out from the Center of the Aisle

I am most impressed when high school students at college/career fairs step up, look me straight in the eye and quiz me about programs and procedures at my college. I don't care as much about their question -- those are fairly predictable and easy to answer or redirect -- as I do about their non-verbal declaration of taking responsibility for their future.

Both sides do recognize that the choice of a program/career, first, and college second, are two of the most important decisions that we make. We might make that decision as a high school junior or senior, or much, much later in our life. And, we often repeat that choice throughout our lives as new goals lead to new educational needs and lead to another gauntlet of college/career fairs.

In contrast to my idea fair-goer, gaggles of students wander down the safe center of the aisle during these fairs, unwilling to make eye contact with anyone at any of the tables. Eye contact, even a sideways glance, might mean that they have to talk about their future which scares them more than subordinate clauses. These students are at the fair because it's a day away from school with their BFFs. Walking upright and not bumping into exhibits is their goal for the day. Most manage that.

I let those students pass without trying to draw them in. Why frighten them? The students that I am interested in are those who will step away from the safety of their friends in the aisle. I want to talk with students who use the fair as a deliberate, purposeful pursuit of their future, rather than those who aimlessly wander the aisles distracted by cheap give-aways, flashy banners and vendors that promise more than they can deliver.

To be truthful, even the focused students will not find all their answers during the fair: it's just a first step followed by campus visits, interviews, applications, testing and advising. Nevertheless, taking the first step from the safety of the aisle, making eye contact and asking serious questions show that they are accepting responsibility for what happens to them. I can help these students begin to understand that college and the future is not a place where you find the right answers as much as it is a place where you find the right questions to ask. It's up to them to step out and step up.