Just finished reading
Susan Greenberg’s post “In Fervent Support of the Gap Year” from January 4th’s
Motherlode blog in the New York Times
(http://goo.gl/JjaOe6). She speaks to her
daughter’s high school experience, and the family’s subsequent decision to
agree that a year as a paid au pair would allow said daughter to experience
elements of work, travel, and personal growth that would support improved
motivation and performance in college the following year. The 4/29/14
Leadership column of Forbes provides
some good questions to talk through this option (http://goo.gl/iIiMlu),
and although gap year data is still relatively fresh and potentially
uncorroborated (http://www.americangap.org/data-benefits.php),
it does raise some interesting questions around whether this experience might
be an increasingly relevant, useful, and popular trend in the U.S. The Melrose High
School Guidance Dept. has posted information on two Gap Year Fairs to be held at the beginning
of February in the Greater Boston area (http://melroseschools.com/2014/12/gap-year-fairs/. As our seniors wrap up their first semester and college letters (both long and
short) roll in, maybe it’s an alternative worth considering.