Pay-To-Participate: the not-so-subtle elitism of SB culture

Years ago, at South Brunswick High School, a "Pay-to-Participate" policy was suddenly announced mid-academic year. All Advanced Placement, or AP, courses now required a 90 dollar fee. This didn't include the College-Board administered tests at the end of the year that drained another 90 dollars from student pockets.  

Students who refused to pay by the end of the year were told that they would lose AP weighting in their GPA, which would lower their grade averages. Too bad most students who chose to tackle a difficult AP course were already signed up in the middle of the year and had no choice but to cough up the money.

There was no discussion, no debate, no democracy. The administration never gave an explanation for their plans, except for throwing around the all-encompassing "budget cut" excuse, a phrase that had run rampant throughout school board meetings with little accounting evidence and zero transparency. How much money did we have and where was it going? How much did AP classes cost anyways? It didn't seem like it'd cost more than any other course, but none of the parents or students could be sure. 

As for me, I barely blinked an eye. I never thought the policy would hold, that such well-educated students at a prestigious high school would ever allow their education to be conditional on their wealth. But the protests never came. Rumors were that a few students here and there signed petitions; some even demanded to speak to the principal. But all were sent back in defeat, with teachers only occasionally complaining about unions and salaries through snide remarks in between lessons. Yet for me, all that mattered was that in the worst case scenario, I could pay the few hundred dollars and get back to focusing on my other academic worries. The problem was that there were too many others who had the same thought process, none of us thinking about those who would actually end up dropping AP classes and face serious dilemmas. 

The real lesson is: high education didn't get me what I needed. Looking back, I'm deeply angry and disappointed in my peers and teachers, but not as much as I'm disappointed in myself. For all the AP classes I bragged about on my college applications, I failed to use calculus or economic or political science to resolve a conflict that was staring me in the eye and sifting my parents' savings from my pocket.

The history books never taught me how to make history, or make me see myself as an active citizen with a vested interest in my community. At the end of the day, we educate ourselves to open up opportunities and give ourselves freedom of choice. So the next time you worry about whether your GPA is high enough or your community service diverse enough, make sure first that your education isn't going to waste.