Students in this generation are faced with many obstacles and situations unique to this day and age, but if asked what their biggest stress is, it would most likely be related to college.

There is no doubt that school culture plays a large role for this stress. Eight out of ten  students would agree that schoolwork, grades, and college admissions is something that constantly plagues their minds. Decisions on whether to go to college or not, when to start, which school to go to and what career is best for them are just a few of the hard decisions that upcoming graduates are going to have to overcome.

Michael Daniel, the school’s college advisor, wants to help students reduce their stress level. “I want students to know that they can come to me with any questions or concerns about college without having fear,” he said. When Daniel was a high school student himself, he didn’t have much thought about college, but found that to further himself intellectually and physically, he’d have to sacrifice and make college a priority. Some people have to learn things the hard way, and many will waste a lot of time doing so. Others view the academic system as a institutionalized method for establishing conformity that needs to be circumvented by any means possible. Most will eventually come around, and the sooner they do, the sooner they can begin to enjoy all that a college education can provide.

Many people already know that going to college is important; it opens many doors and provides many advantages and opportunities. On average, people with a college education earn nearly twice as much as those with only a high school diploma. College and Career Readiness explains that the goal is to build a college-going culture based on early college awareness by nurturing in students the confidence to aspire to college and the resilience to overcome challenges along the way.

There are facts that show that most people are afraid to ask for assistance and help in what they need done. Asking for help makes individuals feel that they are too needy or weak and lazy. Nobody wants to feel that way. The absolute worst thing that could happen when an individual asks anyone anything is that they say “no.” That one little word can throw someone for a loop but its impact on comes from oneself. Any feeling or emotion we ever have starts with a thought and the cool thing is we have complete control of our thoughts.

“It’s because of the shyness,” health teacher, Margot Jones said, “sometimes it depends on the person, whether they’re approachable or not to ask; they have a hard time.” Shyness (also called diffidence) is the feeling of apprehension, lack of comfort, or awkwardness especially when a person is in proximity to other people. This commonly occurs in new situations or with unfamiliar people.The mentors/trackers as well as the college advisor want to help students succeed towards graduation and life after high school.

“A lot of things we try to teach are long term goals. Meeting deadlines, being on time, etc. those are everyday world things that we try to help students pursue,” mentor, Susan Butterob said. Administration and counselors/mentors want to do is help students to put in work and effort as long as students are willing to, so that they can help everyone achieve dreams. Getting help from them will help gain courage, strength and trust. Jodeci Limutau, a 2015 graduate from Taylorsville, shares “the trackers at Tville have definitely helped me throughout my high school career. If any students ever need help, they should go to them because they are always willing to help you as long as you are willing to help yourself.” There are administrators for a reason, which is to run a business or organization. Taylorsville High has a good representation of that, but they also do more. They want to help students find a purpose and to aim to accomplish anything.