Yet another overbearing, doesn't get it parent

Actually, in a lot of cases, most community colleges are making it easier (and cheaper) to take general requirements or other transferable classes, graduate with an associate's degree and then go on to a four-year institution.

 

This. And it's pretty much always been the case, at least here in Kansas. When I went to juco in 1990, each credit hour cost about 1/3 that of a state university. I had a scholarship to film for the football team that paid for everything. Got my basics out of the way and all for free in addition to having a work study job and a Pell Grant (In essence, I was paid to go to a juco). When I went on to the four-year university, I was at least $7,500 ahead based on what the next 2 1/2 years at Podunk State cost me.

 

Why wouldn't you pursue that story? Sounds like a pretty good story to me.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transfer

 

I agree there's nothing wrong with someone attending a JUCO or community college. Go take some courses, get adjusted to college life, enjoy your last fling playing ball and then there will be plenty of time to get serious about earning a degree.

 

I agree. And JUCO doesn't have to be the end of the line for athletics either. Plenty of kids play a couple years at JUCO and then go on to play D-1. Hell, there's guys in the NFL who started out at JUCO. Baseball players get drafted out of JUCO the same way they get drafted from big schools.

I think for many kids it's a case of just not being physically mature enough at 18 to play big-time college sports but after a couple years at JUCO they have a now 20-year old body that's much more ready. And kids who didn't get much exposure to big-time college coaches or scouts in high school can get that exposure in JUCO.

 

Cam Newton did OK going the Juco route (belatedly).

 

Kansas juco rules mandate a 55-man football roster, 43 of whom must be kids that graduated from a Kansas high school. A lot of those kids wouldn't have a chance to go D-I without some juco seasoning, especially the eight-man players. The jucos in western Kansas stock up on those kids.

And any kid who doesn't get a chance to go D-I might end up with a scholarship at a D-II or an NAIA school. Scouts and coaches from Kansas NAIA schools like to look at Kansas kids who are redshirting. They'll pick them up the next year and have a kid who's gone up against D-I caliber athletes for a year in practice and still has four years of eligibility.

 

I don't have a problem with JUCO sports as long as it's not a situation where a football team grabs a bunch of kids who end up flunking out after their first semester.

 

Shaun Hill played high school football in a remote Kansas town, was barely recruited, went JUCO, got a scholarship to Maryland, made an NFL practice squad and eventually became a starting quarterback in the NFL.

 

That's very much how it is in Mississippi, which has one of the top junior college systems (both in athletics and academics) in the country. I could field a pretty damn good NFL team made up just from players who came through junior-college ball on their way to the big time. And for non-athletes, it's an inexpensive way to get those first two years of college out of the way.

 

Back on point, my favorite mom story happened when I moved back here.
The star player on Podunk and the star player on Private High got in a fight over a loose ball and the Podunk player. I don't remember exactly how I described it, but I believe it was something like "Jane clawed at the ball."
Next time I cover the team, Jane's mom comes up to me just as I was about to interview her daughter and says what I wrote was very sexist. I asked what was sexist. She said saying her daughter clawed at the ball. I let her finish what she had and she walked away in a huff.
Jane looks at me and at this point she heard everything her mother said and she had turned bright right.
She simply says "Oh my god I am so sorry about that."
I told her not to worry about it and asked if she was offended by what I wrote.
I'll give you one guess at what she said.