“College,” the big word that is on every senior’s mind in Taft. A word so big that they visit Taft to talk about their programs, financial aid, housing and culture of the campus. They are called Postsecondary Visits, taking place on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Postsecondary Visits provide services to students for their future careers and life choices after high school.
This school year however will be the important decision Taft seniors will make. In a time where college freshmen enrollment has been on a decline and the cost of college being more expensive, it’s a decision that questions what the future of education will be and how the students will continue in adulthood.
Taft Clerk Jamie Napolitano said that the reason colleges are attracted to Taft is because, “They know the talent, they see the students and all their ambitions and their readiness in college.” This is due to Taft having 4,200 students, a huge variety of classes and a wide range of interests and studies.
“We call it Taft Postsecondary Visits because it’s not only colleges but includes other postsecondary options for our students in Learn. Plan. Succeed.” Napolitano later elaborated saying, “We’ve had Lurie Children’s Hospital coming for several kinds of jobs not only just to learn about the healthcare field but what options are available for our students.”
In regards to why college freshmen enrollment has been on a decline, Napolitano said the decline is driven mainly by the cost of college which has made students reconsider their options. Napolitano also noted that it’s, “Very important to students and parents to understand that the dollar amount that you see for colleges isn’t what you’re going to pay.”
For the future of colleges, Napolitano said, “I think that for Higher Education and education itself is important for students and just for us in general and I think that college options, postsecondary options for our students is never going to not be an option.” Her advice for students is to be comfortable with the college process and to find the information to make the decisions that’s best for the students.
“I’ve attended like maybe 5 Postsecondary Visits here at the school and the ones that stood out to me the most were Triton and the community colleges,” said Taft senior Rayane Belmiloud. He plans on going to a four year University to major in advertising design and get an internship to later work at a major company in the future.
As to why he is planning to go to a four year University, Belmiloud said, “I’m thinking of pursuing a four year University as a postsecondary option mainly because I wanna move a little away from home, I don’t wanna live here.”
Belmiloud later said that the reason college freshmen enrollment has been on the decline is because of the cost of college being expensive which affected a lot of people and families. Belmiloud’s advice for future Taft seniors is to pay attention in Seminar class, going to field trips and school visits and to consider all options before making a decision.
Taft senior Breana Gonzalez-Grullon said for which visit stood out the most, “Was Wright College because it was insightful towards the Community College.” Grullon later elaborated saying, “Even though I wasn’t planning on attending, it really showed different programs that I could do to accelerate my education as a backup.”
For her future plans, Grullon said, “After I graduate, I plan on attending a college for pre-med studies under a science, probably astrophysics or biochemistry and hopefully that would take me to Med School so I can later become a surgeon.” Grullon later said she plans on continuing her education to get a Masters Degree and go to Medical School.
Grullon said her reason for her plans is because, “I would wanna do that just to further my doctor career and gain more knowledge.”
“I wanna go to college mainly to have a stable career in the future,” said Grullon. “In my family, mainly my mom and dad, they work at factory jobs that they’ve done for so long now, they don’t know how to do other jobs so I might be different and make more of a higher income.”
Grullon said the reason why college freshmen enrollment is on the decline is because, “Students don’t try as hard and they use AI to get their grades up, so when they have to test into certain classes, they don’t really know what to do.”
Grullon said in a response to if it has affected her decision to attend college, “Personally it hasn’t impacted me or anyone that is close to me because I do most of my work on my own which is why I think I was so successful getting into schools I wanted to.”
For advice to future Taft seniors, Grullon said to look more into the school programs, and to, “Place emphasis on looking into the programs they have to aid your future career.”
The future of students and colleges is up in the air, but no matter what happens, always remember that options are galore and it isn’t the end of the world.
