What does this election mean for college?

I have hesitated to write this blog for a few reasons. First, people are mean and I’m pretty sensitive. And I am not particularly interested in getting into an online debate with mean strangers. It’s actually what keeps me off social media. Second, I don’t get the impression that most people want to listen and this includes people who I am politically aligned with. This doesn’t mean that I hold much empathy for some people or that I blame others. It’s more that I believe we are spun out on the wrong hamster wheel and we aren’t hearing each other enough to know what that is.

And that’s the reason that I ultimately decided to write this. I keep thinking about the 100 million people who didn’t vote and I feel like I might understand why. And understanding why gets us to some questions about college.

At every high school that I’ve ever taught, we start the World History curriculum in 1492. We are trying to explain how we entered into the “modern” era. In my classes, this moment is enslavement because the world attached value to one’s humanity. Some of my colleagues look at other trade networks such as silver because this trade physically went through more continents (maybe) but that doesn’t explain what happens next, namely the conquests, colonialism, revolutions, and world wars. I always find this thread emotionally difficult to teach because attaching one’s value to their humanity was attached to trade. We created economic systems that are dependent on how dominant groups value other groups. We made humanity a transaction. What is most troubling in this election is that all candidates were open about these transactions so the hamster wheel we all jumped on is debating whether women’s autonomy could be solved federally or at the state-level, if genocide is more important than alliances, if the value of immigrant labor permits them to stay in the country, if a felon has a better moral compass than a woman, and if lower grocery prices is worth ignoring so many things... While you can see where I might side in just the way I positioned those comparisons (and I’m not trying to hide that), I don’t think these should be the things that we are even talking about.

We have value beyond our identity and our humanity isn’t a transaction.

We implicitly make all things a transaction in elections. Besides our humanity, our vote becomes a transaction. If you get me this time, I’ll get you next time. Or, that thing you want isn’t as valuable as this thing I want so you need to help me get mine. And this strikes me: people of my demographic have the least to gain in the transaction, but we are counted on the most. We scrutinize my particular voting blocks the most and our “turn” has yet to come up.

This year, a few things happened that I’ve never seen before. Students were apologizing for being gay, minorities, and female. There were a lot of essays that talked about being gay and promising not to hit on anyone. Or, essays about being from immigrant families and promising they were the hard-working ones that don’t eat pets. I was stunned. And careful. I didn’t want to say who actually commits s*xual assaults on campus. I didn’t want to say we know immigrants are hard-working and don’t eat pets. I did say things, of course. But I also said that no one of consequence actually cares about these things. And the real damage is they made us think they care about these things and that this care actually means something more about us than it does about them. I have to say those things because those are shifts that will last longer than it takes to apply to college. And those are shifts that need to happen because four years go by faster than we realize.

That all said, there were two pretty huge events that will have major reverberations for college admissions and debt. Here are my thoughts on how to make it through:

1) Colleges, especially the ones with the large endowments, can admit any number of students they want. Jump off the hamster wheel that gives value to exclusivity. You still need to go to college. I’m not saying that you should jump off that hamster wheel altogether. I’m saying that you don’t have to engage in conversations including those in your own head, that say to you that you are better when you are picked by places that notoriously don’t pick anyone. You’re better than that and you have bigger things to concern yourself with.

2) When you approach colleges, in any situation, remember that you are bringing more to them than they are bringing to you. This doesn’t mean that you are being arrogant. But most teachers, professors, and schools know that we are as great as the students we teach. For example, we know when a teacher moves from novice to expert when they are more concerned with student-thinking than teacher-moves. Student-thinking requires students. Even the most selective schools need students. Jump off the hamster wheel that says you have to prove your worth to people who need you more.

3) Colleges used affirmative action as an excuse to review applications from students of color. As an applicant, you need to come in with that understanding because you need to promote yourself beyond your identity. You work hard. Period. This also means that you should not seek letters of recommendation from people who do not understand that either. I see so many letters of recommendation about a student with a 4.5 GPA and perfect SAT score practically begging the college to do them a favor. If the college is what it says it is, this shouldn’t need to be said. I liken this to that show “Undercover Boss” where the boss learns about all these terrible practices with the company but only helps out the few employees that he encountered while undercover. There are larger systemic issues in education that require massive amounts of institutional changes, so jump off the hamster wheel that says this is solved by how much you make people feel sorry for you today.

4) You have to borrow the least amount possible. We can assume that for at least the next four years private banks are going to take as much as they can from borrowers and that there is going to be less loan forgiveness. Even my own loan forgiveness is in jeopardy at the moment. Keep in mind that this is my 27th year of teaching when I say all of this. Loan forgiveness is supposed to kick in after ten years. My application took forever and when it was finally in review, it was under the first Trump Administration. They paused these reviews. When Biden became president, forgiveness was in the courts and backlogged. My case is still in review. And I’ve just been told that it likely will be paused again sometime next year and they’re hoping it gets reviewed soon. 27 years. Also, I’ve paid off these loans. This is just the interest. And it is such a large stain on my credit, that I can’t do anything that requires even a good credit score. So let this be a lesson to only borrow the smallest amount possible, at least for the near future. Jump off the hamster wheel that has you enrolling at colleges that will not fund you.

5) Similarly, opponents to diversity initiatives have manipulated the meaning of diversity, inclusion, equity, and equality to such a degree that I don’t think they know what they’re fighting against any more. More reason for you to know what that is. Take the classes. Read the books. You know which books because they’re trying to ban them. Don’t let someone tell you what to understand. Go find out for yourself. Jump off the hamster wheel that lets others think for you. That includes social media.

6) To that end, take a closer look at who is telling you things. I worked for a while in therapy to get to this question that I ask myself everyday: What is true? The people who tell you not to go to college, have multiple degrees. They are bending over backwards to get their kids into college, even resorting to committing felonies. The people telling you that you can make a great living without a college degree are underpaying their household staff and company employees, and relying on public assistance to make the difference. The people telling you that they don’t want to pay for your loan forgiveness attend public schools, drive on county roads, receive food stamps and FEMA aid, are on Medicare, and receive extensive farm subsidies. What’s true is they either don’t know what they’re talking about or they don’t want you to know. Get off the hamster wheel that lets them shape the story.

We learned in this election that one’s ability to control the conversation and relegate people to a label or transaction holds a lot of power. In the end, education is not just about the degree or the name on the diploma. It’s about empowerment, perspective, and, most importantly, the freedom to make choices that are true to who you are. So as you navigate this journey, remember: you bring value just by being you. The system needs you as much as, if not more than, you need it. Choose the paths that align with your values, not because someone else told you it’s the right way but because you know it is.

And if nothing else, remember this—no one else can define your worth. That’s your story to tell.