Am I Selling Out?

Well, it is official, I guess. My daughter signed the paper and put it in the mail. Weeks of asking her what she was going to do are finally over. Apparently she has known for weeks what she was going to do (we know that by what she was telling all of our friends), but not telling us "officially" until this weekend. If you have teenagers, you know exactly the game they like to play.

What was "the decision?" Yes, it does warrant lower case letters here. We are not talking LeBron James decision level, just an 8th grader deciding where she would like to go to high school...and it is not the local public high school...

This decision leaves me, in my opinion, stuck between a rock and a hard place. Yes, I am fully aware that this decision was not mine, but I am responsible for paying for it (along with my wife!) See, I have always been a proud card carrying member of my state's teachers' union. I will "discuss" with anyone how important a public education is. That teachers everywhere work very hard to give the best classroom experiences to every child. And my daughter would like to go to a catholic school?....

Her reasons are legit: the local high school is three times the size as the school she signed the letter for. For those of you familiar with New Jersey sports, our local high school is a Group 4. This is reserved for the largest schools in the state. Also, she really likes the religious classes they have to take (I guess the years of dragging her and her brother to church had an impact). And, I would agree, they do a great job of creating a real family atmosphere. All of these are definite positives....

But, the local high school is a quality school. I am all for school choice for students that are opting out of dangerous schools or even low-achieving schools. I have a problem with students that opt out of going to a school that there is nothing wrong with. I know choice is choice, but....

I know this is not about me, but why can't I shake this "selling out" feeling that I have? Am I now a hypocrite for all of those "discussions" I had with people about the importance of quality public education? How do I handle myself in future discussions if my own daughter does not "practice what I preach"?

Again, I know this is not about me. But, these are legitimate feelings/concerns that I have. I know my daughter will do a great job wherever she goes. I am very happy for her. I know, I understand the irony in that statement.

I guess I am using this space to try and work through my concerns. I have not changed my feelings about public school or public school teachers. I guess that commercial was right: "Having a baby changes everything." I just did not know the change would require eating a huge piece of humble pie.

Are there things you have eaten humble pie over since having children? Please share!