Risky Business Keynoter: Get Involved with Your Students!

Franklin Schargel, Risky Business XXIV Keynoter

The “Risky Business” Annual Conference was pleased to have as a keynoter Mr. Franklin Schargel. He entertained, enlightened, and moved the crowd as he presented his keynote address. The speech opened with a slideshow of many famous people who had failed in their lives, including Babe Ruth, Michael Jordan, Harry Truman, Michael Phelps, and many more. Mr. Schargel commented on how if people would have given up on these folks, they may not have been as successful, which translates into the attitude that we should have in the classroom.

Schargel then spoke about the difference between change vs. improvement, and how schools need to change in order to improve the dropout rate. He also noted that educators are responsible for every job in society. We teach the students how to be functional, and they go out and use those skills to be successful in the workforce.

He also focused on how schools need to transition into teaching kids how to think, not just what to think. This is the difference between knowledge and information. Schools should transition from rote memorization to higher level thinking skills, and school personnel should get emotionally involved in the lives of their students.

The audience members appeared pumped up and reenergized after Mr. Schargel’s keynote address. Please check out Franklin Schargel’s web-page www.dropoutprevention.org for further information.