#Rite2Learn by Trevor

#Rite2Learn by Trevor - April 2018 Scholarship Essay

With the recent legislation to de-fund Kentucky educational programs, the idea of “The Right to Learn” has been a hot topic sate-wide. Not only are extra-curricular programs being de-funded, but teacher pensions are being annulled as well. Governor Matt Bevin has raised the question, “Do Kentucky students have the right to learn?”
As an active member of multiple school sponsored activities, I have benefited from the best that Kentucky schools have to offer. Having participated in Speech and Debate for 7 years, acting as a Freshmen Mentor for 2 years, and serving on the Drama Club board for 4 years, I know what it means to receive a quality and meaningful education from teachers who have a fiery passion to constantly inspire students. State funding has supplied me with the resources I needed to be successful for my 13 years in the system. To strip future pupils of Kentucky schools from the opportunities I received is an outright travesty.
Furthermore, the educators that have fueled the flame in my soul deserve compensation for their fervent efforts. The skills and values I have acquired from them have been solely responsible for my success in school. Education means the literal world to me. It is all my peers and I have ever known. Education means the difference between a fulfilled and successful life, and an empty and unsatisfactory one.
When I say, “Right to Learn”, I do not mean the right to show up to school and receive a basic quality education from the pages of a textbook. I mean that every student has the right to the opportunity to build relationships, harness their creative abilities, and have an adult they trust in their life. Not everyone comes from a background wherein they can go home and receive the affection and support that each person needs to succeed. For those who do not have the at home support they desire, school is the place to find that crucial resource.
Education and educators, alike, have made such an astonishing impact on my life. I have experienced so much in my 18 years of life, and I owe it all to the public-school system. The feeling of getting a good education is something I believe every student deserves to feel. Every student has the #Rite2Learn