DROPPING OUT
Parents must be sure child attends school
I read with amazement “Georgia’s list misses 15,161 who quit school” (News, Aug. 19).
While I applaud the efforts of graduation coaches and mentors to help struggling students finish school, the ultimate responsibility falls on parents.
The suggestion that superintendents and principals should be held accountable sums up the attitude of too many parents these days who send their student to school and expect someone else to take care of the rest.
As a parent, it is ultimately my responsibility to ensure that my child attends school, meets the requirements to graduate and, in some cases, apply the proper leverage to make that happen.
Parenting is full of tough choices. Why even become a parent if you expect a government school to do it all for you?
SHERYL WILLIAMS, DOUGLASVILLE
PERSONAL JOURNEYS
AJC feature reminds us of good in the world
I’d like to congratulate The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on initiating the new feature, “Personal Journeys” (“The perfect match,” Living, Aug. 19).
After reading the frontpage headlines for this day, which dealt with lies, the death penalty and deception, it was good to see this new feature being launched.
The story was an excellent way to get started. The feature about Sarah and Bryson Dickman was inspiring and helped to prove that miracles do happen — and that there are good people everywhere who are sent into the lives of those who need help.
It’s reassuring to know that articles of this quality and significance will be a weekly feature of the AJC, and will help us remember that there’s a whole lot of good in this world.
JERRY SCHWARTZ, ALPHARETTA
GOOD SAMARITANS
People came forward to do what is right
Recently, as my husband and I made a left turn onto Haynes Bridge Road, the gentleman on a bike in front of us somehow lost control while accelerating through the turn.
He and the bike did a somersault and rolled to a stop about 40 feet in front of us. In full panic, I told my husband to stop the car, and ran to see if the gentleman was badly injured.
I frequently find the people who live in this area to be rude and self-involved. I was so proud of every person I saw that morning.
The man who was next to us stopped his car and started to direct traffic. Everyone who could see called 911.
A doctor came forward to provide assistance. All this happened before the police arrived. People surprise me sometimes when they do what is right.
The rider was lucky. I looked at the impact mark on his helmet and the damage his riding jacket took, and thought that without either of those two protective garments, he would not have been so fortunate.
JENNIFER ARTHUR, ROSWELL
COLLEGE RANKINGS
Response to “Lies stain stellar reputation.” News, Aug. 19
The misrepresentation of data used to rank colleges has caused a scandal at Emory University. The responses from Emory officials are similar to those of other organizations (the higher-ups did not know, and steps will be taken to ensure this does not happen in the future). Emory can do better. Treat this as a teachable incident. What caused such a scandal in a culture that values integrity? What steps will be implemented to prevent this and why weren’t they already in place? What have other universities done to prevent intentional reporting of false data? Share the lessons learned with others. We already know “circle the wagons.”
Tony Gardner, Cumming
