Here's a novel idea that can get the students out into their communities to benefit both the students' education and the public well-being. What if every student had to work one year of public service before they could graduate high school?

Think about it. Whether it is working at a mail office, enlisting in the Peace Corps, becoming a teacher's aide, going on a mission trip, working for construction companies, the requirements for the public service year are pretty simple. The students must find a service that they have interest in, and they will do one year of public service interning and then they can obtain their diploma.

Let’s say that it is right after their junior year and before their senior year of high school. This gives the students the ability to review life lessons that they have learned through their jobs/services.

When I say “public services” I say it very vaguely because there are so many options for the students to do.

We could try this in a city first and then implement this type of graduation requirement on a national level.

Why should we do this, you might be asking? If we can implement a graduation requirement that mandates some sort of public service, it would help the students gain a better understanding of the world, the labor force, and service in general. Additionally, it would help communities by enlarging their public service workforce.

As far as money goes, this is where things get tricky? Since the students are helping, they should earn some compensation, however, none of the jobs should require the students to put their lives on the line, so the payments wouldn't need to be large. In fact, the students would probably make minimum wage. This can help students because they will be making money and it can also help their families.

Ultimately, this was just a simple idea--something to think about, and nothing more. Could this help our communities around the country? There is only one way to find out.