My hopes for our visit to the high school

In thinking about what I hope to learn from the students of the high school, my gut answer is "everything".  I hope to learn what their lives are like, how they see education fitting into those lives, what they hope to gain from their education, and how they'd like to see their education change or grow.

In terms of what I'd like to take to them, I'm even less certain.  Looking back on myself at their age, one of the things that no one ever told me is that there is no single way to have a successful and happy future and what works for one person may be fundamentaly impossible for another.  I was also never told that one misstep, or even many, doesn't mean that one is doomed or that all possible doors to a fulfilling future are closed.