Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Haley Taylor Schlitz. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Haley, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What was one of the most important lessons you learned in school? Why did that lesson stick with you?
The one thing that my whole educational journey, from homeschool-highschool to law school, has taught me is that you don’t find your path, you make it. You will never come across a golden paved road adorned with signs reading your name. Even in the mainstream highway of public school each student has their own experiences, from grades to social interactions. But if we really want our educational system to teach students in a way that they understand, retain, and are motivated to continue then we must personalize our classrooms and lessons better.
Take for example a Black student who is 32 % more likely to go to and graduate from college if they have two Black teachers before the 4th grade. Another example is how Black boys are suspended at a much higher rate than their white counterparts for the same behavior. Or how Black girls are adultified and dresscoded at much higher rates. Students of color are discriminated against for their natural hair. These are individual experiences in a standard classroom.
There are students who need gifted and talented programs, or even just harder assignments, to stay engaged. There are students who need support as they navigate their classes and school in general. We must allow teachers to teach, and let the experts handle each student so that we achieve the goal of education.
Standardizing education is something that public schools will always fail to accomplish. There can be a standard platform, but what is built off that platform and how is always going to be unique, even in the exact same classroom. A cookie cutter education system is not going to work for anybody, we aren’t even all cookie dough.
My homeschooling journey proved that to me, when my success bloomed after I left the public school system. It was an unhealthy environment for me due to microaggressions, discrimination, racism, and a very general education I didn’t fit into. When I was homeschooled, I was in a much friendlier environment and I was able to go at the rate I needed to excel.
In college I majored in education so that way I could get an in-classroom point of view of our educational system. I wanted to get my hands in the system and see what needed to be done. I quickly realized, and as modern times have only exceedingly proven, that o=the way our educational system is set up is a huge contributor to the problem. The ABC letter grade system, our teacher diversity, policies that allow discrimination and barriers, and laws that stop our teachers from effectively teaching each student is very present. This pushed me towards the law. I was very interested in updating a system that was never designed for the America we see in 2022, for Generation Z, or for diversity and truly teaching our students.
When I got to law school it was only confirmed further that personalization and flexibility is needed for the diversity we see today in our students, their life situations, their minds, their talents and hardships, and they way they grow. Law school has proven several times over again that laws need to keep up with time, and out educational system ahs been the exact same structurally since it was founded. The founding of America was very different from us today, no wonder students of all ages, races, genders, sexual orientations, classes, religions, and more are are struggling. Only the privileged get to truly personalize their student’s education, and that is something the law can fix with flexibility and support of our public education systems, our teachers, and our students and their families in and out of that system.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
My name is Haley Taylor Schlitz and I am a 19-year-old third year law students. I got here because of my educational journey that started in high school. I was able to do a college-style homeschooling that allowed me to take the classes I needed to stay engaged and grow as a student and person. This resulted in me finishing all my high school classes at the age of 13, which is when I graduated. I then got my undergraduate degree in three years at Texas Woman’s University. I got my bachelors of science in education. I am now a third year law student at Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law in Dallas, Texas, from which I graduate in May. I think what sets me apart from others is not the mere facts I previously stated, but the opportunities I took advantage of with my hard work. I may be smart, but honestly getting to this point was hard work and my work ethic and time management are truly skills I am proud of.
I want any readers to know that I do not have to be such a story. You or your student can accomplish all your goals as well. Whether that be exceling quickly or achieving a difficult goal , or both, it can be done with the right knowledge and execution. Homeschooling is a great way to go about this because it gives you or your student the most control over the what, when, how, where, etc. of the education received. But even if you cannot homeschool you can still accomplish all of your goals as quickly or steadily as you want to. Enriching your public school experience with a homeschooling mindset is very impactful. My mother, Dr. Myiesha Taylor, and I wrote a book called The Homeschool Alternative that covers exactly what the homeschool mindset is and how to develop and use it. Basically, it is taking every life opportunity as an educational one. Being at the store can become a math lesson, going to the park can become a science lesson, bedtime reading can be a children’s history book. This way, you or your student gets to explore their passions and stay engaged and motivated to learn.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
In my first semester of law school I had a class called Legal Research and Writing. That class started of really well, and the professor gave me positive feedback, but eventually it proved itself to be the most difficult class I was taking. This is true to the point where my professor and I were meeting over a paper I wrote, and she told me I was going to fail out. Despite her “words of wisdom” I am a third year law student. I dedicated myself to that class for hours every say, including the weekend, for hours. And when spring break came, from the time I woke up to the time I went to bed I was working on that class. It to this day remains the lowest grade I have ever received in law school, but I finished it and passed. Although, I did not stop there. Since then I have taken nearly fifteen classes that were completely legal writing, from the assignments to the final paper. Those classes have ranged from final papers with a minimum of 15 pages to a minimum of 60. The lowest grade I have received in any of those classes is a B, It just goes to show that practice makes perfect, and hard work pays off. Keep on keepin’ on, as my mother says. “Never be limited by others’ limited imaginations.”
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
I was not always an education major. I was a chemistry major before that because I wanted to be a doctor like my mother. Although, as I reflected on my life, what I wanted to do, and the impact I wanted to make I changed my major to education. I think a lot of people fear going to college or declaring a major because they think they are stuck. You are never stuck. Even if you are not sure you want to go to college, if it is possible you may want to don’t take a gap year go to community college and sign up for a few core classes. This way you get exposed to college, at a cheaper price, and if you like it you did not waste your time in any way. No matter your major core classes are all extremely similar and required. There are two years worth of cores you can take, so take a few and see what you think. While taking your cores you may find you passion in one of your classes as well. And even if you declare a major you can always change it. Classes can transfer over, and even if all of them don’t colleges offer classes year-around. You can take summer classes, winter classes, may classes, summer classes, and regular semester classes if you fear delaying graduation. In my life one of the biggest pivots I made was changing my major and I still graduated in three years instead of four. It really taught me that you can change your mind, and life, especially education, is about growing, learning, and getting to know yourself.
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