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Multi-tasking students

By Kathy Davis-Vrbas

?While rural school districts struggle with funding issues arising from declining student enrollment, the kids themselves are facing a separate challenge connected with low numbers.
With budget cuts always looming on the horizon, adults naturally campaign for the school activities closest to their hearts. We are unwilling to lose one sport, one musical activity, one extracurricular program. But the students themselves are expected to fund these activities with commodities more precious than money: their time and energy. Declining student enrollment not only means less funding from the state. It also means fewer kids to participate in our programs.
Increasingly in recent years, we have watched students change hats more and more throughout their days, multi-tasking from one activity to the next. It is not unusual for a student to report before school to an early club meeting or team practice; attend morning classes; eat lunch over a club business meeting; attend afternoon classes; attend another meeting during activity period; go to sports practice or perhaps even play a game; then go right to a community youth program meeting — sometimes skipping supper. Homework and maybe some eaked-out family time take the kid into a late bedtime. And in the morning, the process begins again.
If we, as a community, are unwilling to let programs go, then we are expecting our kids to participate in several programs, often during the same season. Burnout is possible. But multi-tasking is not necessarily a bad thing; in fact, adolescence is an excellent time to learn to prioritize on a day-to-day basis. After all, don’t some of the most productive adults wear many hats? Participating in several programs helps our kids learn to focus and utilize their time wisely.
Additionally, it is by providing a wide variety of activities that we mold the well-rounded individuals the Midwest is known for producing: well-adjusted, self-motivated, independent, multi-skilled youth with a good work ethic. Our sons and daughters are our greatest gift to a nation that needs prepared and capable leaders.
In Rawlins County, we produce more than our share of quality citizens who are ready to take their place as community contributors, whether they return home or choose to live elsewhere. This is due, in part, to a great school system that works hard to provide academics, athletics, music, art, scholars bowl, forensics, FFA, StuCo, SADD and a variety of other activities, despite funding hurdles. But it’s also due to a volunteer community that provides character-building church youth groups, Scouts, 4-H and other programs.
For our part, adult leaders of youth activities should strive to be role models of good communication and respect each other’s programs. Though some conflicts are inevitable, we can try to avoid scheduling important events on top of each other. When conflicts do occur, we can vow to respect the kids’ choices.
Above all, we need to remember the real goal: to build up our individual kids and prepare them for life.