Messages and Calendar of Events & Activities - Week of September 14, 2026

       

Dear Island Trees School Community,
   
  Please see the messages, as well as the calendar of events & activities below:    
   
   
 A Mistake Doesn’t Change the Future. ❤️
  
 Sometimes, as parents, we can feel like one mistake our child makes is a much bigger deal than it really is.
  
 But here’s what we want our families to remember:
  
 Kids make mistakes.
  
 They make mistakes at school. They make mistakes with friends. They make mistakes in their decisions. And sometimes, those mistakes have consequences.
  
 That’s okay.
  
 School is a place where students are supposed to learn, grow, and become better decision-makers. As they mature, we hope the mistakes become fewer and the lessons become greater.
  
 And when a mistake happens, take a breath.
  
 Your child is going to be okay.
  
 They will move on to the next grade.
 They will continue to learn and grow.
 They will have new opportunities.
 And, yes, they can still go to college and pursue the future they dream about.
  
 One mistake does not erase all the good that came before it.
 One mistake does not define who a student is.
 And one mistake certainly does not determine their future.
  
 Let’s give our kids room to make mistakes, learn from them, and keep moving forward.
  
 Their future is still ahead of them. And it is still full of possibilities. ❤️
  
   
  
 
 American colleges are facing an enrollment crisis as young people turn to trades
 By Jared Downing
 Published Aug. 21, 2026, 6:31 p.m. ET
 
 College-schmollage.
 
 American colleges are facing an enrollment crisis as more young people opt for vocational schools and trade jobs — drawn by steadier career prospects, higher relative pay and less debt.
 
 The number of high school grads enrolling in traditional colleges could decline 13% over the next 15 years, the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education predicts.
 
 Part of that is due to a decline in birth rates, meaning fewer Americans will be turning 18 in the coming years.
 However, more and more students are choosing trades and vocational programs over traditional four-year degrees that might end with a mountain of student debt and no high-paying job.
 
 “People always ask me, ‘Should I go to barber school?’ And I always tell them to go for it. It’s the best career decision I ever made,” said Benjamin Davis of Los Angeles, who decided to learn to cut hair instead of earning a traditional college degree.
 
 He now has a steady job at Floyd’s Barbershop and can find work anywhere he goes — more than can be said for many college graduates stuck with degrees that are more impressive than their real-world job prospects.
 
 Unemployment and underemployment among recent college graduates — which had rebounded after the pandemic — has steadily risen in the last four years, according to recent data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
 
 Meanwhile, enrollment in two-year vocational programs has risen around 20% since 2020, according to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.
 “[Trade school] is very direct,” said Cynthia Moreno, 50, who manages a hair salon in California and teaches cosmetology at Pasadena City College.
 
 She said her students are attracted to clear, straightforward job prospects in a steady industry — and have none of the stress of huge student debt coupled with the prospect of breaking into the corporate world.
 
 Her own son majored in communications (a field with a 52% underemployment rate and median early-career wage of only $52,000, per FRBNY) but ended up managing a major grocery store — a rewarding, decent-paying job that he enjoys, she told The Post.
 
 A healthy market and “wage compression” — i.e., higher wages for jobs requiring less or no education — are big draws for the trades, said Dr. Nathan Grawe, Professor of Economics at Carleton College.
 
 “If you go down to your local Aldi and they offer you 20 dollars an hour plus benefits, or you can get a certificate in a high-paying trade and find a job, all of a sudden the idea of spending four years in college becomes less attractive for some students who are on the fence,” Grawe told The Post.
  
 Bucking the trend for now are Ivy League schools, where applications remain strong, according to the National Center for Education Statistics, as reported by the Wall Street Journal.
 
 Grawe said this is because parents today who grew up being told they must go to college are pushing their kids to apply to top-tier schools.
 
 Meanwhile, the elimination of standardized test requirements, application fee waivers, and other provisions has led to more youngsters applying to the Ivy League.
 Caught in the middle are public universities and expensive two-year degrees, which could be a more expensive and less efficient alternative to simply entering the workforce after high school.
 
 “And some of them might be thinking they’ll go back. They’re saying, ‘I wasn’t entirely sold on this education journey, and the trades are a good alternative. But I can always go back and get my associates later, if that’s what I want,”  Grawe said.
 
  
 Homecoming Reminder 
     
 
   
   
 Drone Show
  
 Our high school now offers a drone class, so we may have students who are interested in watching this special 9/11 remembrance event taking place on September 10 at the Embassy Diner.  For residents on the east side of the school district, you may also have the opportunity to see the drones light up the sky as part of this tribute commemorating the 25th anniversary of 9/11.
  
 
  
 
   
  We Transport – Employment Opportunities 
  
 We need bus drivers!   We Transport will train drivers to obtain their CDL license.  
   
 
   
  
   This Week’s Calendar
   
  Monday, September 14 – Dollars for Scholars Meeting, ITHS
  Tuesday, September 15 – ITHS College Fair for Students, 12:30 p.m. – 1:45 p.m.
  Tuesday, September 15 – Senior College and Financial Aid Night, ITHS, 7:00 p.m.
  Wednesday, September 16 – Board of Education Meeting, Karopczyc, 7:30 p.m.
  Thursday, September 17 – Stokes School, “Meet the Teacher” Night – follow the class schedule
  Saturday, September 19 – Island Trees Homecoming Parade, MMS start, 1:00 p.m.
  Saturday, September 19 – Island Trees Homecoming Football Game, 2:00 p.m.
   
   
  Athletics Game Schedule Link
  https://www.islandtrees.org/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=415372&type=d&termREC_ID=&pREC_ID=767844
   
   
  Island Trees Home Page – Parent Square Link and Pop-Up
  https://islandtrees.org/
   
   
  Island Trees Social Media Sites
   
  Twitter/X - Sparke School
  @SparkeShines
  https://twitter.com/SparkeShines
   
  Twitter/X - Stokes School
  @WeRStokes
   
  Twitter/X - MMS
  https://twitter.com/IslandtreesMMS
   
  Twitter/X – Special Education
  IT_SpecialEd
   
  Island Trees High School
  Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/islandtreeshs
  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/IslandtreesHS/
   
  Instagram – Athletics
  islandtreesathletics
   
  Island Trees Curriculum and Instruction Instagram:
  islandtreeslearns
  https://www.instagram.com/islandtreeslearns/
   
   
  Two-Week Calendar Look Ahead
   
  Monday, September 21 – Yom Kippur – Schools Closed
 Tuesday, September 22 – College Fair for Students, ITHS, 8:15 a.m. – 9:45 a.m.
 Wednesday, September 23 – MMS/ITHS School Pictures – Smile!
 Thursday, September 24 – MMS/ITHS School Pictures – Smile!
 Friday, September 25 – Emergency Early Dismissal Drill (schools dismiss 15 minutes early) “Go Home Early Drill”