"My opinion? I don't think I know anything about that."

The 20-year-old education major looked at me, visibly agitated.

“I was thinking about going to substitute in the schools here,” she said. “I think it might be a good experience and that I might learn some things. But my boyfriend says that I shouldn’t do it. He doesn’t want me to do it and thinks it’s a crazy idea because I’m young and because high school students can be so hard to deal with. What should I do.”

“Well, what do YOU think you should do?” I asked my student, looking her in the eye. “What is your opinion?”

“My opinion?” she asked, hesitantly. “I don’t think I know anything about that.”

Her statement is a telling one, confirming her difficulty in forming an opinion about her own life – particularly when that opinion contradicts one held by her boyfriend.

Here is a student who is seemingly successful. She earns good grades, comes to class regularly, participates in discussions, and seems to have a clear vision for her own professional future.

And yet, after having this conversation with her, I would classify her as “at risk.”

Why? Because she seems unable to form an opinion of her own, and is more interested in pleasing her boyfriend – a young man who she is not even certain will be in her life in the coming months – more than she is in taking steps to improve her marketability during difficult times.

We see these students often, as we travel the country speaking to students and their leaders, and advocating for educational and social justice in a variety of ways.

Our colleges are full of them.

In some cases, they earn their degrees. But often, they do not make it that far, choosing, in one way or another, to sabotage themselves before graduation. Maybe they suddenly stop doing their work and end up being kicked out for academic reasons. Maybe they check out entirely and get lost in a world of partying. Or maybe they just drop out abruptly, often saying they are doing so to work.

There is a move within our society to place more of an emphasis on the academic, social and emotional needs of male students. And we know that statistics show that male students, particularly minority males, are, indeed, often at risk. Males need to be encouraged to graduate from high school, attend college, and to generally make good choices.

But at the same time, we need to be sure to keep a focus on young ladies as well. Because maybe they don’t show up on a chart somewhere, categorized as “at-risk.” But they are there. And they need our support and our advocacy.