Swampscott: A Town That Needs To Invest In Its Childrens Future

Each generation is expected to leave their mark upon this world. Today, teenage entrepreneurs are becoming more and more common, but Swampscott schools are failing in providing students with the same tools other schools are being equipped with.

Swampscott offers a wide variety of extracurricular programs, but they pale in comparison to what other schools in the area are offering their children. Many of these programs are preparing children for the world and supporting them in finding their proper niche in a world that they have been given to fill and change with their ideas.

US News ranked the top 55 high schools in the state of Massachusetts. Newton North High ranked 35th, while Swampscott failed to rank. Newton North offers a 50 page manual of elective courses to students while Swampscott offers a mere one page index. 

More and more top ranking schools are providing students greater opportunities through arts and technology classes, as well as more extracurriculars in the English, history, science, and math departments.

Classes at Newton North range from fashion design to a class called “Greengeneering”, a class described as a class “for students to engineer new and sustainable solutions through research and project-based learning.” These revolutionary courses are being offered to high school students who leave an hour away from us. Meanwhile, the most complicated courses we have to offer are Anatomy and Bioethics, classes that may inspire a few students future’s, but not many in the whole.

Marblehead, who also did not rank on the US News list, but has consistently ranked higher on other evaluations, offers nearly 60 pages of elective courses for students to take. Classes offered at our “rival” school include Graphic design, woodworking, marine technology, and textiles amongst countless others.

These schools are offering their students classes which prepare them for life, for what they want to do, who they want to become, and how they want to add their piece to this world, However, here at SHS we offer students a generic bunch of courses that can apply to any and all students. Nothing motivational and state of the art here. Yes, our school tests well, yes our school has a high college acceptance rate, but what is our school doing to prepare these students for the world. Some students won’t go to college, so why are Swampscott schools leaving the job of helping their students find their place, their calling, to colleges when it is more and more important to help kids as soon as possible. It’s imperative that public schools offer help to their students, everyone needs a helping hand and it is the schools job to guide them.

Swampscott needs to get on track with schools that surround them and adopt programs that will inspire and prepare students. Our students future, our towns future and even our world’s future, is worth this investment.