If we're teachable, we can learn much from the top academic students at Jefferson City High School.
A story in Tuesday's News Tribune focused on the attitudes, habits and work ethics of three seniors with GPAs above 4.0 on a weighted scale and separated by only .05 points.
The students, and their GPAs, are: Meredith Manda, 4.145; Sidney McMillan, 4.107; and David Steinmeyer, 4.095.
Their comments reveal they share much in common, including:
• Parental involvement. All three scholars said their parents encouraged them and were involved in their education. McMillan said: "My values have been instilled through my parents." Steinmeyer said his parents "always kind of challenged me to be the best."
• Balance. Although academics are important for all three students, they are involved in other pursuits, including church, athletic, volunteer and extracurricular activities. For example, Manda is a deacon at her church and a competitive figure skater; McMillan is a community volunteer and basketball player; Steinmeyer is active in his church and plays tennis.
• A love of learning. Newborns are fascinated by the world around them but as people grow older and surroundings become more familiar, the sense of wonder and fascination with learning may diminish.
That's sad, because learning is boundless. Consider the frontiers of knowledge now being explored in health care, communications, robotics, etc.
Manda described the path to academic excellence when she said: "I don't see it (learning) as a chore, but this is a free education that we don't have to pay for. That's really why I think I have such a high GPA. But definitely a love of learning - not seeing it as a chore, but a privilege - is what make it so special for me."
Educators love learning; it's among the factors that attracts them to the challenging career of teaching. But no profession has cornered the market on a love for learning.
Learning is free and readily available. Knowledge empowers those who pursue it, nurture it and share it - as personified by local scholars.