Community College to Harvard: Rethinking College Admissions | Josh Lafazan | TEDxYouth@Shadyside

[Applause] Tom Hanks Halle Berry Arnold Schwarzenegger Queen Latifah Josh laughs Azam what is the common denominator that binds this list of eminence individuals yes if you were thinking that this is a list of both successful and attractive human beings then you would be 100% entirely correct no this is actually a list of celebrities who at one point in their careers attended a community college I'm here to speak to you today about why all students regardless of your GPA socioeconomic status academic interests or career goals should consider Community College as the starting point for your collegiate journeys now Shadyside Academy is a premier private school in the Pittsburgh area so I'm sure you all haven't heard a great deal about Community College when it comes to Community College there seems to be either an omission of information on behalf of elite schools or students are ingrained from a young age with the adage that if you don't work hard you'll wind up in a community college I make this inference because I went to Syosset high school a perennially ranked top 200 public school district and I certainly didn't know a whole lot about what Community College was when I roamed the halls there but then again the only things my friends and I really did know we're had to get an extension on a paper and the operating hours of the local Taco Bell boy have I come a long way since age 17 a long long way since age 17 but what I had heard was that students would tell their friends as a joke that they'd wind up flunking out of school and have to enroll at NK K or Nassau Community College because the students there couldn't spell so let's start with the basics everybody what is a community college community colleges often colloquially referred to as junior colleges are defined as two-year schools that provide affordable post-secondary education as a pathway to a four-year degree essentially Stu enroll with the intention of parlaying their two-year degree or associate's degree into a four-year degree or bachelor's degree now of course community colleges aren't just for recent high school grads they are filled with enrollments of people from teachers who aim to accrue a certain credential to workers who aim to retrain in a new skill to older students going back to school and a myriad of other examples but I preached the importance of Community College today because of its value for graduating high school seniors and I practiced what I preach because I enrolled right into Community College when I graduated from Syosset High School in 2012 I cannot overstate what I am about to say this was not an easy decision for me in fact it was one of the most difficult choices that I've made to date now this is a corollary that I use for life whenever we take an alternative route in life or do something differently other people just cannot handle it whenever we choose a courageous path to take a road less travel we subject ourselves to it seems like unrelenting criticism and ridicule this is precisely what happened to me I was told that I was throwing my life away that I was and I quote pursuing the worst life plan ever my favorite anecdote seeing my father in the supermarket a mom whose daughter was headed off to a 4-year private school said to my dad with a hushed voice and in all sincerity my condolences my condolences was as if she was writing my eulogy I mean I'm still alive and kicking here lady geez but as much levity as I can bring to my recollection of this time period it was not easy for me in fact I was brought down so often and with such fervor by my friends and other community members that I told my parents I had made a mistake and I wanted to disenroll from Community College luckily my parents reminded me of the value in taking a unique path and I was able to weather this storm of admonishment but I know that not everybody has the same support system that I have and I know that sometimes it's a lot easier to hear things from someone who isn't named mom or dead my friends that's why I'm giving this talk today here's my story I was a student like many of you in the audience today I had a very high GPA had an accomplished career on the varsity debate team was a member of more clubs that I could count and was in the midst of an election to my town school board of education an election I went on to win making me New York's youngest elected official I pause here to say this it doesn't matter who you are nobody is too good for Community College so the crux of my decision to enroll into Community College was to assuage potential voters that I would be local for at least two years thus allowing me to dedicate my full attention to serving on the school board but there were countless other advantages to enrolling into Community College I was interested in a host of topics and I wanted to explore different subject areas and while most colleges make you declare a major before you enter as a freshman I was able to take a liberal arts track I studied at the Guggenheim and the Met for art history with professor guest visited the Vanderbilt planetarium for astronomy with professor Bruckner and studied the art of debate with professor Webb I observed rocks and soil with professor this--an and evaluated the effects of globalization with Professor Ram Iraq I was also able to transfer all of my AP and college credits thus allowing me to graduate a full semester early and by the time I graduated I was able to transfer into Cornell University at the ILR school where I gained admission after completing Community College with a 4.0 GPA you guys think I'm an anomaly just ask my friends Anthony Conte from Rhode Island Community College Markus hill from Dutchess Community College Jake Meisels from Rockland Community College or Logan Kenney who graduated a year prior to me in Nassau Community College all of whom took the same path that I did and wound up at Cornell University don't believe me still ask my friend Ryan Liu who after graduating from Pasadena City College transferred to Yale University flash forward to present day where I am currently a student at Harvard's Graduate School of Education just six weeks away from my master's degree the kicker I did this all while saving over one hundred thousand dollars over my first two years of school and for a host of reasons Community College is also a great choice for you financially Community College is a home run the average cost per year at a private college in 2016 was thirty three thousand four hundred and eighty dollars the average cost for Community College three thousand three hundred and forty seven dollars going to Community College allowed me to earn three degrees with less debt than most walk away with from one personally Community College is a home run as you will have a flexible class schedule as a commuter student you will have ample time to get a job during the week thus earning disposable income while also learning how to navigate the workplace but most importantly Community College makes you a better citizen never will you be in a more diverse environment when it comes to thought race age and intellectual ability going to Community College allowed me to become more understanding of those who came from different places than I did and I am a better man today because of my time at Community College and further record I acknowledge my personal privilege in giving this talk because for almost half the country community college is the norm in the 2013-2014 school year 46 percent yes you heard that correctly 46 percent of students completing a four-year degree attended a two-year institution at some point in the previous 10 years and 1167 community colleges in the United States enroll more than twelve point four million students that's more than the entire population of Belgium you now have all the information and statistics available at your fingertips you've heard my story and I've seen how Community College prepared me to earn not one but two Ivy League degrees I've laid out the arguments for why Community College is the right choice for you a nice name once said that life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage all that standing in your way is courage the courage to be different the courage to do what's best for you and not what satisfies the opinions of others the courage to take a road less traveled you know every morning since I was a kid my mom would give me the same piece of advice you can hear in my head now Joshua Alexander laugh is an stay in your own lane stay in your own lane this guidance has been inculcated in me because I have come to understand that in life it's not about where you start what matters what truly truly matters is where you finish so when you're at Cornell or at Harvard or at West Point or Annapolis or wherever life takes you you will look back with pride at your decision to enroll in Community College and ladies and gentlemen at that point with your cap and gown on your diploma in hand and an eye towards the future I promise you that the only person laughing will be you thank you everybody [Applause]

Channel: TEDx Talks

Views: 95,831

Rating: 4.9667411 out of 5

Keywords: TEDxTalks, English, United States, Education, Revolution

Id: cPrpRbuoEPE

Length: 12min 1sec (721 seconds)

Published: Thu May 11 2017