School Daze

It’s August. Many young adults are preparing to either return to college or began their career of higher learning in order to engage in the aristocracy of the mind as preparatory work to be a better citizen. And, yes hopefully, earn more money over a lifetime.

The beginning of the collegiate endeavor is a time filled with excitement and uncertainty because most young college students will really be on their own for the first time. No parent will be there to wake them up. The professor is not going coddle them about their homework.

Some will be away from home for the first time and will go “buck wild” with the party scene or trying to fit into Greek life. Others will meander through the fog of trying to fit in with whatever clique they feel most comfortable. There will possible be experimentation with sex, alcohol, and/or drugs under the guise of trying to be part of the in-crowd. There are those who will began a different spiritual journey from the one they grew up with, if they had a religious upbringing at all. This is a great, remarkable time of discovery.

The Family First

For many African Americans who go to college, even in 2012, they are still the first in their family to pursue such an academic venture. However, most African Americans will pursue this endeavor looking for and needing to be with people who have similar backgrounds. As the product of a historically black university, this was not a difficult task for me. However, even at predominantly white institutions, there are such organizations as black student alliances that will create a sense of fellowship and family.

Nevertheless, the pursuit of the bachelor’s degree is the hardest because there is a fundamental shift in approach and discipline for most colligates. Usually, there is the requirement to do interdisciplinary course work with more vigor than was required in high school. The demands will be greater and expectations will be higher. Yet, you can survive if you have three key ingredients present on your journey.

Surviving The Daze

First, find a credible faith community and be consistent in attendance. Too often, young people who are raised in the church go to college and become like the prodigal son. There is an abandonment of faith tradition and home training. But when a person is a part of a faith community, the bond of a spiritual family coupled with accountability is established. When one is faced with paper deadlines, balancing extra curricular activities, and going through personal development, I have discovered that a faith community helps keep things in perspective. I share with my young people, who go away to college, the name of churches they can be affiliated with because I know pastors in many cities across this country.

Credit Crisis

Secondly, avoid getting bit by the credit card bug. Credit is great when it is properly managed. However, I have seen too many young people get “easy” credit on campus, run up the limit and then have to get a job to pay off the card that their parents don’t even know they have. Then, you are working a job while trying to go to school. It is hard to serve “two masters.”

I was a “victim” of this foolish thinking and reaped the repercussion for nearly 20 years trying to pay off those debts. This is because most young African Americans are not financially savvy. A side note: If you have scholarships, you have no need for a lot of student loans. The news headlines are inundated with stories about the student loan debt because it is seemingly easy money, but it can be an albatross around the neck later. Most students get loans but they did not spend it on education. They use the loan to get cars, clothes, or have cash in their pocket. But the “grim reaper” known as debt collection will come knocking. In fact, when it comes to student loans, the banks or government will garnish tax refunds and paychecks to recoup those funds.

Know Your Purpose

Finally, remember your purpose for going to college. Our world in general, and our community in particular, are in desperate need of bright minds and keen intellects that have been challenged in academia and are being shaped for service and communal uplift. There is nothing wrong with coming out of college, getting a great paying job, and living well. However, we need persons who will give back to the community and become agents of social and communal transformation through the arts, business, education, technology, science, and spirituality. The purpose of going to college is not to party your life away; join a Greek organization; or be the social butterfly on campus. The purpose is to be a sponge, soaking up all the experiences of learning, debating, and critical assessment and then emerging from that setting with a new set of lenses that empower you to live with a sense of destiny, hope, and faith. And, in the end, this allows you to leave wherever your feet trod a little bit better than it was before you got there.