Why College? Why Not?

The title of this post is: Why College? Why Not? At a glance this brief question and answer may make no sense, but actually it does. You see the caption above was taken from a poster that I purchased when I was a college student. I loved this poster or actually the series of Why College? Why Not posters? I found these posters quite appealing because of their message: on one poster there was the quintessential dream house that sat atop a mountain. Underneath the mansion-like house were seven open garage doors which housed a car for everyday of the week: the Mercedes-Benz, the BMW, Lamborghini, Maserati, Porsche, Ferrari and one other which I can't seem to remember as I sit here writing this post . . . nevertheless, I am sure that you are beginning to see where I am heading in mentioning this.


To make a long story shorter, I had three of the aforementioned posters which I placed in 24 X 36 frames. My plan was to mount them on my wall to remind me of the myriad rewards in pursuing higher education any time I began to question my educational endeavors or the inherent value of pursuing a college education. Indeed, the posters served as nice daily reminders of what treasures can be amassed by pursuing higher education. Nonetheless, perhaps, my allusion to the Why College poster story appears a bit materialistic, but please don't misinterpret my intentions here for I do recognize that there are so many reasons that high school students and others choose to pursue formal higher education beyond the pursuit of luxury cars and big houses.


To the contrary, the point of this post is to merely highlight that there are so many individual reasons that those of us who choose to matriculate to our nearest university or college choose to do so. For some, well, it is to continue to excel and achieve in school so that they can achieve the American dream of white houses and picket fences. While for others, the pursuit of education is draped in family tradition or generational legacy--you were born to attend university (sorry, I had to say that). And yet for others, pursuing higher education is part of our individual recipe for success. Today, if you want to become a doctor, lawyer, engineer, nurse, teacher, psychologist, biologist or whatever your chosen field of human endeavor, guess what? You-have-to-go-to-college--plain and simple, no "ands," "ifs," or "buts," about it!


In the age of the New Millenium--the 21st First Century--it is paramount for young people to secure the necessary educational preparation and training that will equip them to be players in the global and ever-changing world economy. So, having said all that, I decided to start the blog Forward University to serve as a source of information, advice and encouragement, among other things, to prospective college students across the land. Recognizing the importance of education, I wish that all students will graduate from high school, and move on to post-secondary education. Perhaps, this blog will help to achieve that lofty goal.