Top-notch education

Top-notch education

Education may not always be on the front page of every newspaper, but it is on the minds of most of the citizens of Williamson County. There are countless stories that revolve around education as one of the top reasons, if not the top reason, that people continue to want to live in Williamson County.

Why is education so important?

There are many answers to this question. One perpetual answer is that our democracy is reliant upon our country having an educated population. All of our citizens obtain the right to vote when they reach the age of 18. It is imperative that all of our voting citizens have the education that allows them to analyze issues, synthesize complex information, and make the best choices possible for those people who control our government. Without education, democracy as we know it would not be successful.

Another answer to this question is that education is the key to better financial success for our citizens. By 2020, some education beyond high school will be needed in 80% of jobs. The children to whom this applies are entering our schools within the next couple of years. Children who are currently graduating are finding that some education beyond high school is needed for many of the current jobs.

Did you realize that one-half of the people on Earth are under the age of 25? Of that three billion people, by 2016, 1.2 billion of them will enter the work force. However, an optimistic projection for available jobs is 300 million. The right kind and amount of education can insure that our children will be those who will have jobs, and are not among those who are not able to find jobs.

Education is important to us all. I will be authoring a column concerning education on this website on a regular basis. Stay tuned for more information about one of the most important aspects of our community.

For our children,
Rebecca Sharber