Why I Dropped Out of High School

… Kind of.

I attended a private, Christian high school. I enjoyed my time there, made lifelong friends, and received an excellent education. But as I returned for my junior year in 2020, I was unimpressed. Post-Covid schooling felt like prison. All the enjoyable elements of school were practically nonexistent– we were “socially distanced” during lunch, events were canceled, and football games had limited capacity. As if that wasn’t enough, I was only taking 4 legitimate classes in an 8 period day…every day. And after meeting with my academic advisor to plan my senior year, I realized I needed only 3 to 4 more classes to graduate.

I loved my time at private school, and as I mentioned before, I reaped the benefits of attending there. But I came to realize private schools are simply not equipped to be conducive to the efficient learner. Students who love the school atmosphere and live for GPAs, college fairs, and extracurriculars, will thrive. This is the ideal attendee. The efficient learner, however, likely finds far more value in life experience– working, cultivating skills, and utilizing education as a resource as opposed to a lifestyle. These are the students who are attempting to graduate quickly, rather than fill their schedules with filler classes and study hall periods. They are unaccommodated for; there is no such thing as “senior release,” or attending half-days. Nor does that tuition balance adjust to the number of real classes you take.

Another major factor in my concern was the likelihood of my future college attendance. At the time, it was low (and spoiler alert, it got lower–I did not go to college). I thought, 

What is my purpose here, at a college prep school, if I have no interest in college? 

Of course, no one is limited to a certain high school experience based only on the post-grad path of their choosing. But between my school’s lack of options for me, and there being no need for a resumé filled with school clubs and dual credit courses, my mind was made up.

After ruminating on these ideas while completing my first semester, I left. I left behind friends I loved, clubs I was active in, and class periods I enjoyed. I retired my role as dance captain and let go of that dual credit course, but I regained my autonomy. I didn’t have a plan, but I knew two things: 

1. I wanted to (and could) graduate early.

2. I wanted to be making money in the process. 

To get one thing straight, I did indeed graduate high school. I ended up enrolling in an online school and picking my classes a-la-carte; taking only the courses I needed to graduate. Less than a year after I unenrolled from my private school, I graduated with honors, a semester early, while working full-time. Leaving my traditional high school was one of the most uncomfortable, beneficial, and growth-stimulating choices I’ve experienced in life so far. It was altogether wonderful and far from easy, and here are three major lessons I learned:

The first lesson I learned is that the only reality that mattered was mine. Leaving my school and deciding not to pursue a college degree was not the common route to take. I was well aware and prepared for this, but it didn’t come without resistance. Snide rumors about the reason I left were (intentionally) started behind my back.  Middle-aged men told me, to my face, that I would never “get ahead” in life if I continued with what I was doing. What a world we live in, that whether we are 15 years old or 50, we’re sure that we can determine what success means to another. I’ve often wondered, is there an objective definition of success that I’ve somehow neglected to understand? Must it always be monetarily driven, or marked by some sort of ascendancy over another person?

I believe that success and contentment go hand in hand. They’re both intuitively grasped; unable to be recognized or created by anyone outside of ourselves. Therefore, the opinions of others simply cannot matter when they carry no weight to begin with. This is easy to say, and much harder to apply, as we all long for community; we are hardwired to crave approval. But I learned quickly to identify my true community and consider their feedback only. People project their insecurities, but I now know I am not obliged to embody them. Allow people to doubt, and then, carry on– their reality is not yours, and therefore, it is irrelevant.

This leads nicely into the second lesson I observed: education priorities are not universal. There are numerous environmental factors that impact what we value in our education journeys. Parents play a huge role in this. As do extracurriculars, career goals, and personality types. An excellent basketball player likely has different priorities than the benchwarmer, and likewise, the aspiring entrepreneur often has different priorities than the aspiring MD. A traditional high school path is generally an excellent launching pad for an athlete aspiring to enter the collegiate level. Similarly, the aspiring MD may benefit by graduating top of their class at a school that provides a rigorous education. College will also be a profitable decision in both of these scenarios.

However, to the young entrepreneur, or the aspiring artist, or even the kid that just has no interest in the limitations of the system: life experience and workforce exposure are your newest best friends. Choose wisely the path that presents you the most opportunities to learn by doing. This may mean taking a typical high school to college trajectory! And it may not. Two things can be true at once; our experiences are exclusively our own. College is valuable to one, and worthless to another. Four years of traditional high school may be richly beneficial to you, and a waste of time to me. This is a notion that changed everything for me.

Lastly on this list of lessons is that self-discipline cannot be taught, and the journey to master it is isolating. People love ease. This is not to say the beaten path is easy to walk, but rather, it’s easy to attach to. It’s expected, approved, and defended by the masses. Status and prestige are safe within the walls of common choices. Though attractive, this safety never teaches us to stand on our own two feet; to have such clarity in a choice that no thing nor person could inspire doubt in us.

However pleasing that may sound, competent decision-making takes work. Putting energy into comprehensive research and self-reflection is a (nearly) foolproof recipe for success in this area. If you decide to take the common path, excellent. Let it be due not to expectation or ease, but wholehearted belief that it aligns with your goals. In contrast, if your life takes a more alternative trajectory, this is admirable as well. Almost nothing will be easy, and almost everything will catapult you towards growth.

I am still young, inexperienced, and learning daily. I have little expertise in the ways of the world and my written communication is a work in progress. But my contentment and growth over the past several years are testaments to the lessons I shared above. I hope you find this thought-provoking; providing a fresh perspective to live boldly and decisively in favor of growth. Learning never ends! Cheers to that.