PRINT ARTICLE

Print    Close This Window
The Choice Bus Visit
Each year we are fortunate to have the Mattie C.  Stewart Foundation's Choice Bus visit our school.  Many of our 9th grade students will have the opportunity to participate in the experience. The Choice Busis an experience-based learning tool designed to show young people the power of education, as well as the likely consequences of choosing to drop out of school. It contains a full scale replica of a prison cell which is hidden behind a curtain and flat screen television. Upon entering the bus, a four-minute movie will quiz the audience on the earning potential of a dropout versus a high-school and college graduate. The movie also features several powerful testimonials from people who regret dropping out - prison inmates. When the movie is finished, the cell is revealed demonstrating the stark reality experienced by many dropouts. Students are then invited into the prison cell to briefly experience the uncomfortable living conditions. As students exit the bus, they receive a pledge card and are asked to make a commitment to finish school and make good choices.