To the Class of 2020: It’s your time now
For members of the Class of 2020 — whether graduating from high school or college — this spring’s celebrations are certainly not what they expected or planned. But as with so much in life, it’s not what happens but how you react that matters.
These graduates, their families and the community, are rising to the occasion. In the weeks since students across New Mexico were sent home, seniors got their work done and made it to graduation. For the past few weeks, parades of friends and family, along with community support from police and firefighters, have made drive-by parties the safest, most fun way to celebrate. We are adapting (although, yes, spectators at these events should wear face masks.)
For college graduates particularly, the prospect of entering a job market in the biggest economic downturn since the Depression is daunting. The state of New Mexico, for example, will be hiring some 200 contact tracers to keep track of COVID-19 infections. Recent graduates might qualify for some of those positions.
There’s also no shame in returning home to live for a time, helping family in a time when the world is upside down. What is important is to avoid debt and find opportunities — whether paid or not — that add to a person’s skill set once hiring opens up again.
It’s also understandable if people are sad about their changed circumstances. It’s true that not having a traditional commencement service is hardly akin to sacrifices made by World War II-era high school students who left school to fight, but this is still a loss. Times remain uncertain, with a cloudy future and worse times possible.
High school graduates planning for college face a real likelihood that their campus might not be open in the fall. Parents and children have to decide if they want to pay thousands of dollars a semester for online classes, or whether they will begin their education closer to home.
Getting basics online at Santa Fe Community College or Northern New Mexico College might be a better bang for a buck than sending thousands out of state right now. It’s the uncertainty of what will happen in the fall that is difficult to endure.
But that’s really the lesson of this pandemic: Life is uncertain. Much of what happens to us is out of our control, despite our best intentions. An April NPR story on job searches by graduates highlighted Timothy Hasson, who had given up law school for what he thought was a better bet — a trade. Hasson went to Central New Mexico Community College to become an aircraft mechanic, only to graduate during an era when planes are grounded: “Obviously, I sort of assumed having a trade would be a pretty safe bet. I just happened to get the one trade that got specifically hit really hard by this.”
And so it goes.
These high school and college graduates are dealing with the coronavirus pandemic but also suffering because of bad decisions by adults. Their awful choices have the potential to make lives difficult for years to come.
Former President Barack Obama, in his commencement speech to the Class of 2020, was blunt about this reality: “All those adults that you used to think were in charge and knew what they were doing? Turns out that they don’t have all the answers. A lot of them aren’t even asking the right questions. So, if the world’s going to get better, it going to be up to you.” Control what you can and let the rest go.
That’s easier to say than to do, especially when summer jobs and internship opportunities have vanished or when first job prospects are slim. This, too, shall pass. But it’s not easy, and it’s not fair. Still, as a community, we should recognize and celebrate the accomplishments of the Class of 2020. Their future is bright, despite the difficulties.
Graduates, go out in the world and make it so, even if you need to live with family to avoid debt or your first-choice career has to be delayed while you trace COVID-19 contacts or help hungry people at a nonprofit. If nothing else, this pandemic will teach the art of adaptation. That’s a skill to value in this modern world.