Middle School Students Get to Make 'Choices'

The following was received from the guidance department:

Many adults wish someone had convinced them years ago that decisions made during high school would resonate for the rest of their lives. Today there is a pro­gram that does just that. The Choices program takes volunteers from the busi­ness community and places them in eighth-grade classrooms to connect with stu­dents as they prepare to make crucial decisions that will affect their future lives and career options. 

The Choices program was created in 1985 by a single father who initially want­ed to reach out to his troubled teenage son, then brought the program to a local school, which enthusiastically embraced it. Since then, Choices has been pre­sented to more than 5 million students throughout the United States, Canada and Australia.

JTMS counselor Karen Staples recruited three business professionals, all parents of Jefferson Township students, and they presented the program to the township's eighth-graders on February 1 and 2. The volunteers, Stephanie Muller of Fulton Bank of New Jersey in Lake Hopatcong, Katherine VanWolput of Oak Ridge Martial Arts Academy and Matthew Van Wolput of Oak Ridge Martial Arts Academy,have been trained to present the live classroom activity while sharing their own experiences in two one-hour sessions during these two consecutive days.

The purpose of the program is simple, yet profound. The Choices program teaches that goals are achieved by applying self-discipline, that decisions made today have both short- and long-term consequences, and that time and money management are key tools to success. Instead of lecturing, the program is presented through role-playing and active participation.

For example, each student is assigned a specific personal factor—such as attitude, appearance, neighborhood, gender or interests—that is an element in the question, "Who am I?" Together the class discusses about 30 such factors and students are asked to distinguish between those that cannot be changed and those that are under their personal control. Students discover that more than half of the factors affecting them are under their own control and can be impacted by their thoughtful decisions.

The Choices program is being presented in the Jefferson Township Middle Schools, and teachers and administrators are optimistic that it will reach some stu­dents who may lose opportunities because they are not looking beyond the pre­sent. The program concludes with an activity that empowers all students to grow by urging them to start making better choices today.

"With the help of a parent or trusted adult, eighth-graders were required to complete a thought-provoking 'Goal Getter Worksheet' to consider their choices and take charge of their future," Staples explained. The worksheet asks students to out­line choices that will help them obtain their immediate goals in education, family life, personal life and friendships, as well as identify future aspirations such as careers, relationships and life goals.

The worksheet is assigned as a simple assignment, but the developer of the Choices program has found that this activity can change the course of a teen's life by encouraging, perhaps for the first time, introspection and self-actualization.

At the conclusion of the program, participants complete surveys that will be reviewed by the coordinators and shared with school administrators and the business volunteers.