Losing Our Youth

Description: 

        A Thirteen-year-old female was shot yesterday in Raleigh. We hear of teenage murders in Raleigh several times per year. It is tragic to read in the news of young people dying violent deaths in the impoverished neighborhoods of Raleigh, N.C. By the time a young person is shot, the situation has already gone far beyond any interventions that could have made a dramatic difference in the possible trajectories of that person's life. 

        Raleigh is the principle city in this region of the state. We in Wake Forest share a lot with Raleigh. We bus students in to our schools here, from neighborhoods all across North Raleigh, in an effort to integrate people from differing backgrounds. They help us to excel in interscholastic sports, such as football.

        But their problems stem from deeper roots that are not addressed so well merely by putting the disadvantaged students in the same schools with students indigenous to Wake Forest, where we have a much higher percentage of students from privileged backgrounds.   

        Extra-curricular programs do not benefit the young men and women from the North Raleigh Projects, for they cannot stay after school given that they must ride the bus home.  Generally, they lack independent transportation. Also, living that far away, they spend a considerably higher percentage of their day sitting on a bus. This is more difficult for elementary school aged children.  I saw this when I was bus driving for Wake County last year.  


      Prescription: 

    We need to bring highly skilled teachers into preschool programs at small daycare centers right in the center of the projects, where there is no need for students to sit so long on buses and arrive late to school.  In those same centers, after 3 p.m. (standard time for school to be over), we can have private groups come in and: 

   A. read fine quality older children's literature to the children and
   B. teach the game of go.   


Wake County hosts candlelight vigil to honor crime victims as families cope with anger, sadness

By Cindy Bae,  22 April 2024

13-year-old girl dies after shooting at apartment complex in Raleigh

By Elaina Athans, 22 April 2024

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