Lake Woebegone, D.C.

Where all the kids are above average...

D.C. Lawmakers Propose Requiring Students to Apply to College

Lawmakers in the nation's capital have floated a plan to require high school students to apply to college or trade school -- even if the students have no interest in attending.

The proposal is a bid to ensure students in the troubled Washington, D.C., school system at least have the know-how to navigate the admissions process.

D.C. Council Chairman Kwame Brown, who introduced the bill, said the proposal would establish a "mandatory workshop" to teach teenagers how to apply for aid and admission. It would then require everybody to apply to at least one post-secondary school before graduation.

"I believe that every child should have the opportunity, even if they don't go, to at least apply to a college," he said as he introduced the bill Wednesday.

The bill would also require every high school student to take the SAT or ACT tests. While the admissions and test-taking process would entail fees, Brown said he would work with the school system to make sure students have the "resources" to apply.

It would be much better education if they forced D.C. kids to fill out a complicated US tax return before they graduated, without benefit of software.