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Academics Over Friendships
"The high school and college drop-out rates of African American guys are high. That, to me, proves that hanging with your friends can cause failure."
By Aubrey Roberts
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What obstacles do youth face as they try to succeed academically? Youth Radio's Aubrey Roberts talks about why he’s convinced that the only way he can succeed in college is to avoid his friends from school...friends he thinks are a bad influence. As a young African-American man, Aubrey feels like he has to choose between academics and friendship.
Though I am currently in high school here in Georgia, there is no way I’m going to college in this state. Not that Georgia is bad. It’s my friends that are the problem. I’ve seen the statistics to prove it – the high school and college drop-out rates of African American guys are high. That, to me, proves that hanging with your friends can cause failure.
So my plan is to go to a college where I don’t know anyone – and I won’t have friends around looking for trouble. Sure, if I stayed in state for college, I’d get cheaper tuition, but what good is it if I drop out?
Hanging out with your friends brings your GPA down. If I leave town, I can meet new people, learn new cultures, and forget about my past. I think going to an out-of-state college will decrease my chances of dropping out significantly. Anyway, it’s great to see what the rest of the world has in store. I just need to make sure I don’t make too many friends in another state.
- Youth Radio Atlanta is produced in cooperation with WABE and funded in part by The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation.
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