In a world where it seems school shootings and other acts of violence are becoming more common, students are saying no more and taking a stand.
In mid-February, there was a school shooting that killed 17 students in Parkland, Florida. What was different about this tragedy, however, was that the students did not stay silent.
On March 24, people from across the country took a stand together with the March For Our Lives event to end violence.
March For Our Lives was a larger event involving a string of peaceful protests of students speaking up and speaking out for change. Prior to the march, there were student walkouts across the country, both in memory of the lives lost as well as a statement for change. Following the walkouts, there was some backlash from different high schools saying the walkouts were hurting the student’s education and that disciplinary measures would be taken against the students who participated. It is not harmful; it is beneficial to the student’s education. In a world that can be so violent and cruel, it is important for students to grow up strong, to be able to think for themselves and to stand up for what they believe in. These walkouts and the march are exemplary of just that.
Students who stand up for what they believe in are the brave and driven students that universities are looking for. As college application time approaches, the students who have participated in these events can use their involvement in these peaceful protests to convey to the schools they are interested in the depth of their passion and their motivation to stand up for what is right.
People who sit back and expect the world to change for the better are not the proactive type of people that are needed in the world. What colleges will see on these incoming application essays are young people who care, people who are not afraid to try to make a difference no matter what their age is.
According to a New York Times article, colleges across the country are assuring prospective as well as admitted students that peaceful protest will not affect their admission status. Walking for a statement is not an action that warrants disciplinary action, it is a way in which students all over the U.S. are standing together for change.
Colleges want to assure students that, even if their peaceful actions resulted in disciplinary measures from their high school, it will not impact their chance of admittance. Standing up for what is right to make a difference can only help, and the reactions of colleges to National School Walkout and March For Our Lives have only reinforced that.
