Students at Washington High School learn about the ramifications of turning 18
In 2001, when Todd Pappasergi was a senior at Charleroi Area High School, he posted a comment on the ESPN website regarding the death of NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt.
There’s nothing too out of the ordinary about that. But despite 17 years having gone by and Pappasergi now working as a lawyer, the observation he made as a teenager can still be unearthed on the internet. All it takes is a Google search and a couple of minutes.
In a talk with students at Washington High School Wednesday morning, Pappasergi used the remark he made half a lifetime ago to illustrate how social media postings – particularly those that are dashed off in the heat of the moment – can haunt individuals years after they have made them. An ill-tempered or poorly-thought-out comment can lead to lost job and school opportunities, and not just nagging embarrassment.
“You can’t delete Google,” as Pappasergi put it.
Pappasergi’s presentation, “Turning 18: Legal Issues in the Real World,” which is being offered to school districts in Washington County by the county’s bar association, also touched on all the other pitfalls and obligations that come with reaching legal adulthood. Although legally purchasing a drink is out of the picture until age 21, and staying on a parent’s health plan is allowable until age 26, 18 is the age at which one has attained “the age of majority” in the United States, and with the ability to rent an apartment, get married, be tried as an adult and start accumulating a credit history – notions that can seem daunting to someone still in high school’s protective cocoon.
The presentation covered these areas, along with cyberbullying and harassment and some of the ways adults strengthen their communities by participating in democracy and voting.
“If I can get maybe three kids to rethink what they’ve been doing, then I’ve done my job,” Pappasergi said.
“Turning 18: Legal Issues in the Real World” was once titled “Stepping Out for High School Seniors.” It was developed by various local bar associations and the Pennsylvania Bar Association in the late 1990s. Several attorneys in the Washington County Bar Association have volunteered to present the program in county high schools. Along with Washington High School, Pappasergi recently presented it at Ringgold High School.