1996-1997 Harry Singer Foundation National Essay Contest
Responsibility, Who Has It and Who Doesn't and What That Means For The Nation
"I believe programs such as the Education for Parenting, that works with kids
kindergarten through twelfth, should become a more prominent factor in schools nation
wide. The Education for Parenting started in 1978, led by Henri Parens, with six doctors
and social workers from the Eastern Pennsylvania Psychiatric Institute of the Medical
College of Pennsylvania, along with other various persons. The program brought in parents
and infants for observation by students in which the students could see the stages of
mental, emotional, cognitive, and physical development of a child beginning at birth. The
classes also showed and revealed the relationship between child and parent and the
patience required to care for a baby whose only beginning way of communication is to cry
or holler. These classes are also used to estimate the cost of raising a child, the
responsibility of caring for another completely dependent living being, and the influence
on teens to practice abstinence or at least safe sex practices."
Mary K. Kechter, Strasburg High School, Strasburg, Colorado
"Many people agree that our welfare system is in need of definite reform. Nobody likes the welfare system. The American taxpayers hate paying for it; the politicians hate representing it, and the poor hate being trapped in it. There are many things wrong with the system, but there are also many programs to try to reform it. . . A record number of Americans throughout the United States are dependent on government assistance (welfare benefits) to support themselves and their families. Behaviors such as: having children without the benefit of marriage or financial means, dropping out of school, and accepting welfare for long periods of time rather than seeking employment, should not be rewarded with our American tax money.
So you may be asking yourself, is anything being done to reform the welfare system?. . . Recently, Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Vermont, and Wisconsin have all sought to limit the time a welfare recipient can stay on welfare. Putting a time limit on welfare would motivate parents to get a job and give them time to do it.
The Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training Program (JOBS) is a program intended to help welfare families obtain education, training, and employment, so that families can become self sufficient. Unfortunately, many parents fail to attend these classes and interviews. Maybe if we emphasize the importance of this program and require the welfare recipients to attend the classes and interviews in order to obtain their benefits, the program will be more successful. Learnfare is a welfare program similar to JOBS, but it requires students to attend school, or they lose their benefits. So far this program is only active in Wisconsin and Ohio.
Wisconsin has commenced their welfare reform by putting a strict two-year limit on welfare benefits. Also it is denying benefits to any child conceived while a mother was on welfare benefits. Iowa is sorting out the recipients who are capable of work and those who need support to survive. If they are capable of supporting themselves, then we should not be doing it for them. I think other states should consider what is being done about our welfare system and contribute to the reform also.
I don't believe that there is a single solution for solving our welfare problem. I do, however, believe that many things are contributing to poverty in America today. I think that if little things were done to help the poor, we could end welfare as we know it. Motivation and support is needed by all welfare recipients today to help them move forward and out of poverty.
I think a major problem for single mothers is child support. Many fathers are hiding
from their parental and financial responsibilities and are getting away with it! Although
required by law to pay child support to any children who receive AFDC benefits, very few
of these fathers do. For example, Wisconsin is the state with the highest child support
collection rate in the country, but only about 13 percent of 'welfare' fathers are really
paying their child support. This is costing the government and the people billions of
dollars a year. . .Another problem welfare is facing is laziness. If mothers can sit at
home and collect money doing it, why should they work? I believe that all welfare benefits
should have strict time limits. If a parent knows that they will not always be given
everything, they will be more motivated to find a job or get some training. . .Although
many things would have to be considered, time limits would transform welfare from a
permanent lifestyle to a transition to employment. . .I believe that welfare isn't helping
the poor, but is a hindrance to them. It is like a narcotic that destroys the energy and
determination of people who already lack responsibility. It is a system that needs reform,
and we are the people that can help reform it!"
Joslin Dunning, Strasburg High School, Strasburg, Colorado
"During my research into the sexual functioning of teenagers I found some
interesting information: The majority of women who arrived at abortion clinics with
unwanted pregnancies know about birth control but don't use it. Teens who have taken 'Sex
Ed' courses increased their knowledge of sexuality information but were unable to identify
the time in a woman's menstrual cycle when she is most likely to become pregnant. Why? Are
teenagers not able to process information in an effective way? Are too many American
adults acting as poor role models for America's teenagers? I don't know the answers to
these questions or statements but our teenagers, and I, need to know the answers. . .
America needs more mature male teenagers who know not to have unprotected sex or don't
have sex at all. Teen pregnancies are a very big deal today and we need to have loving and
caring parents and we need smart teenagers to cooperate and learn about safe sex. I am
sixteen years old and I have went through Sex Ed classes at my school and I don't know the
answers that I mentioned in the first paragraph and I should. I also know that I would
never in my lifetime as a teenager have unprotected sex with anyone."
Nicholas Fahey, Strasburg High School, Strasburg, Colorado
"I don't watch the news on the television or read the newspapers anymore. Over the
years the articles read began to bother me, more increasingly in the most recent years. I
don't watch or read about news because almost every story is about violence. It disturbs
me to think that we, in our modern world that is supposed to be sophisticated and
politically correct, fear for our lives every time we walk out our front door. It seems
that virtually no place is safe from the threat of violence. What makes this thought even
more frightening is that much of the violence is created by people who aren't even out of
high school. What has happened in our society that has instilled America's youth with
these ideas of drive-by shootings, guns at school and other acts of violence we experience
every day?"
Jason Cline, Strasburg High School, Strasburg, Colorado
"So many children are being taught about developing their own values, about
controlling their own lives, not letting people pressure them. Mainly it's about learning
how to say 'no' and not feeling guilty. Being a teenager who is pregnant is pretty much an
individuals choice because there are all kinds of protection out there. A big problem
right now is how the guys ditch the girls, so they have no one to turn to for money other
than the government. People are trying to crack down on this by possibly raising child
support, so teenagers will maybe think twice, so they don't have to spend all their money
because they wanted to fool around."
Amanda Krebbs, Strasburg High School, Strasburg, Colorado
"While some children idolize NBA stars or the great football players, I believe we
should teach our children more about the people who earned us our freedom. . . I am not
exactly sure that you or I completely comprehend the role that the veterans of war have
played in our past or the future development of our future. The thought of life without
all the common necessities that we in America have is indeed a frightening one, but
without the brave soldiers in our country's past the things that we enjoy today would not
exist; they would be a dream."
Kelli L. Buller, Strasburg High School, Strasburg, Colorado
"The slow erosion of the American family weakens the very core of American
strength. . . With the circumstance of dual working families and increased work time comes
the neglect of the children. This often results in socially dysfunctional attitudes, drug
use, and alcohol abuse and in the increase of crime as well as mental illness, teen
pregnancy, and suicide."
David Schroth, Strasburg High School, Strasburg, Colorado
"Most Sex Education classes are taught to eighth graders and up. To me this is
like the saying of closing the barn door after the horse is out because statistics show
most sexually active teens become active around the age of thirteen."
Mary K. Kechter, Strasburg High School, Strasburg, Colorado
"They should make it the law that kids should only be left alone for no more than
12 hours a day."
Sunshine McMillan, Strasburg High School, Strasburg, Colorado
"If there is not enough communication between a family, then there is no teaching
or learning about respect for other people or their property."
Jason Cline, Strasburg High School, Strasburg, Colorado
"United States Fish and Wildlife service estimates that the illegal profits from
poaching in the U.S. are two hundred million dollars a year and growing. The trade
attracts all kinds of people, from organized crime to poor people."
John Burdick, Strasburg High School, Strasburg, Colorado
"My personal idea on how to help those teens who aren't sure if they want to live
or die is to do a better job of letting people know where to go to get help. I think
posters could be put up and public service announcements could be made listing hotline
numbers and offices of counselors. I also think it would be a good idea if all schools had
a program where each student picked a teacher they respected and trusted to be their
'guidance teacher'. They could talk to this teacher about anything that was bothering
them. Finally I think this point needs to get across - if you know a person who is
considering suicide tell someone, even if you've been sworn to secrecy. It's better to
have a friend that is mad than a friend that's dead."
Amanda Carrick, Strasburg High School, Strasburg, Colorado
"My solution is to use college volunteers to find out who the underage drinkers are. Also the volunteers could find out who is buying the alcohol. After finding out who is drinking, make them suffer the consequences. They should pay a fine, and if they are caught again, they should be suspended from the college. If they are not a student, and it is a second offense, they should be put in jail.
If the frat house parties get out of hand, I think their consequences for drinking
violations should be suspension of the fraternity from that college for at least ten
years. If you had the right people do this that really cared enough about it, this could
be a really good solution. I really don't think that we will be able to ever fix the
problem completely, but I do think that we could help the problem a lot. If we lessen the
drinking, the crime rates would decrease a lot too."
Tina Graff, Strasburg High School, Strasburg, Colorado
"To get rid of discrimination you have to change how people think. One solution that I came up with to prevent discrimination in employment should start with the interview. I think that companies should invest in a room where the applicant sits, but the person who would be administering the interview could not see them, but the applicant could or couldn't see the person who was giving the interview. The applicant would answer questions, and this way the person would be given the job based on their answers and not how they looked, what background they came from, who they may know, what color of skin or what sexual preference they may have.
If it was time for a company to give a promotion, and the person who decides on the
promotion knows everyone who is up for it, then the persons should be assigned numbers and
have them answer questions and decide from there. If this way was used now favorites won't
get promoted and people who really deserve the job gets it. I think that if these ways
were used it would make people less skeptical about the way people are hired."
Stephanie Wahl, Strasburg High School, Strasburg, Colorado