Lauren Nelson

MOST IMPORTANT ISSUE

A thirteen year-old boy trudges into Woburn's local Boys and Girls Club,
his eyes glassy like two translucent pools of water.

The scent of marijuana permeates the room; nevertheless, he denies having
smoked after school.

A few weeks later, a twelve year-old youngster stumbles into the same Boys
and Girls Club to attend their middle school social for the month of
January. Immediately, he crashes to the ground.

His speech is garbled, his breath carries the overwhelming odor of beer.
This boy admits to drinking before arriving at the dance and is suspended
from club activities. Five months earlier, a fourteen year-old girl strips
from her bathing suit on the basketball court.

Displaying her naked body for all to see, she stands on the court unfazed
by her intolerant behavior. Due to these horrifying instances of unruly
adolescent behavior, the single most important issue facing Woburn at
present is a community-wide inability to connect effectively with its youth.

As fourth year student of Woburn High School, I know the hardships,
downfalls, benefits, and complications of being a youth member of this
community. I have lived in Woburn for more than sixteen years; from the
Reeves Elementary School, to the Joyce Middle School, to Woburn High, I am
a product of the Woburn public school system.

Moreover, I am a Junior Staff member of the local Boys and Girls Club, as
well as an active member in various community and school social
organizations. Due to these personal traits, I have continuously dealt with
the children, pre-teens, and the teenagers of Woburn; I know first-hand the
problems and stresses that Woburn youth face each day. Problematic
teachers, failing grades, peer pressure, substance and alcohol abuse,
desires to be well-liked, pre-teen and teenage sex, pregnancy, family
troubles, and death are only a few of the issues with which I have been
confronted.

Due to my ongoing experience with Woburn's community and especially with
its youth, I have realized that the young population of Woburn is the key
to community success.

Children are the leaders of the future, the people who will succeed
Woburn's current community.

Hopefully, these youth will carry Woburn into a bright, prosperous future.

However, as days pass, I cannot avoid being confronted by issues that both
baffle and disturb me. Woburn's youth is drowning.

For instance, the students of Woburn High School are under more pressure to
succeed academically, athletically, and socially than ever before.

The college admission process grows increasingly complicated and
time-consuming; to countless students, acceptance to college is a daunting,
challenging, unbearable task. Not only must students complete homework and
study, but many also face pressure to take high-level courses, become
involved in extra-curricular social and community activities, and
participate in sports.

At the same time, numerous Woburn students hold part-time or even full-time
jobs, some laboring for more than eight hours a day. Furthermore, the
ages-old pressures that accompany youth remain, such as exploring and
solving the issues of drugs, sex, and alcohol. While countless students
find themselves able and ready to handle the stresses of being a teen,
others slip, often unknowingly, through the cracks. Unfortunately, some
revert to drugs, cigarettes, and alcohol; within two years alone, two of
Woburn High's students were killed in alcohol-related motor vehicle
accidents, and there has been a series of teenage pregnancies.

At the same time, middle school students are engaging in risky behavior
earlier than ever before.

Through my work at the Boys and Girls Club, I have come into direct contact
with young and pre-teenagers - I have also come into direct contact with
their behavior issues.

I personally know twelve year-olds who smoke cigarettes and marijuana.

I also know pre-teens that engage in sexual activity, wear short skirts and
thong underwear, and drink alcoholic beverages at parties on the weekends.

For the security and protection of Woburn's youth, this unruly behavior
must be halted.

Moreover, elementary school students are growing increasingly exposed to
adult-oriented topics.

I cannot count how many times eight, nine, and ten year-old children have
asked me to explain an "orgasm," or told me that their friends are "gay."
Young children are beginning to employ words of which they do not know the
significance, words that can be considered offensive or explicit. When I
was nine years old, I played with Barbie dolls and watched My Little Pony
on television; however, Woburn's youth at present is far different from the
childhood I once knew.

Woburn's administrators do not have to act upon this behavior, as they
cannot be forced to commit themselves to anything they do not deem of
crucial importance. On the other hand, increased devotion to Woburn's youth
would render significant changes on the future of our community,
transformations that would positively revolutionize the lives of hundreds
of children.

Firstly, Woburn must find a more effective method of reaching out to its
youth about risky behavior. The D.A.R.E. "Drop-In Center," an open gym for
Woburn's youngsters held on Friday nights, is an exquisite instance of a
positive way to occupy our youth - however, it does not address the
negative consequences of risky behavior. Similarly, the D.A.R.E program as
a whole, as well as academic courses such as Health, fail to reach out to
kids. I have been told countless times that, "they sound too much like a
lecture from Mom or Dad," that they are "too boring." Instead, Woburn must
offer in-depth, youth-on-youth approaches to address social issues.

By setting up sessions where older and younger children can meet to discuss
issues such as sexuality, drugs, alcohol, and personal stresses, Woburn
will more efficiently deal with risky behavior.

While children are influenced by adult role models, their decisions are
also heavily affected by youth role models.

Woburn does not place enough stress on this aspect of its community.

Though the Boys and Girls Club, YMCA, and Boys and Girls Club provide
direct links between older and younger youth, not every child in Woburn is
a member of these organizations, nor are all members of classes that have
teenage helpers.

Therefore, this contact between youth must be more strongly established.
Through activities such as weekend social activities and interest in
after-school extra-curricular organizations dedicated to aiding fellow
youth, Woburn should establish a sturdy medium between its youngsters,
pre-teens, and teenagers.

Woburn's citizens can decide to leave its youth in its current condition -
troubled by drug, alcohol, and sex issues, plagued by family and friend
issues, dreading school stresses.

They can be left to subside without an outlet in which to release their
stresses, or they can be aided.

Youth can be aided to keep themselves healthy, to achieve their best
potential, to live up to all they can be. They can become outstanding
citizens of Woburn and the world - or, they can be hopelessly left to nothing.

The future is in the administrators' hands.