Doing Well vs. Doing Good: Parents Struggle With Their New Grads' Idealism

An interesting article from the WSJ about the tension between today's youth and their families when they take a low-paying public service job:

The pressure on young adults to earn a lot of money right out of college has seldom been greater. Beyond soaring rent and fuel costs, college seniors are graduating with record debt loads. Yet idealism springs eternal in the hearts of youth -- more strongly than ever, by some measures. The number of people ages 16 through 24 who volunteer 100 or more hours a year has risen nearly 18% since 2002, says a Census data analysis by the Points of Light Foundation, Washington.

"For a lot of my friends from college and high school, the buzzword is finding your passion," says Sean Smith, 24, a 2004 University of Notre Dame graduate and Peace Corps volunteer in Thailand.

The result: tension for grads and their families, as young adults strive to do public service while still paying the piper.

---------------------------

Doing Well vs. Doing Good: Parents Struggle With Their New Grads' Idealism
By Sue Shellenbarger

The Wall Street Journal

June 29, 2006

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB115153441487793521-search.html?KEYWORDS=teach+for+america&COLLECTION=wsjie/6month

Rachel Kreinces' parents thought she was bound for law school last year when the 2005 University of Pennsylvania graduate revealed a surprise: She wanted to join Teach for America, spending two years in the classroom in a low-income New York school.

Her parents "said flat-out, 'No!'" Ms. Kreinces recalls. "They said, 'Get a job and work.'" Her father, Gerald Kreinces, Commack, N.Y., says he saw the program as "a luxury," requiring financial support for Rachel to live in New York City on a starting teacher's pay. He also feared she would abandon her law-school plans.

Now, after Rachel's first year teaching sixth-graders with emotional and learning disabilities, her father is proud and "he loves to tell family and friends" stories from her classroom, says Rachel, now 22. Dr. Kreinces, a dentist, says "it's been a great thing for her ... a real growth experience." In addition to helping her pay the rent, he has purchased a fan and a newspaper subscription for her classroom...