While I understand the idea behind this program, I feel as though paying students to get good grades is not the way to go about motivating them. Often times I feel that students complain that they are so busy with school that they are stressed out and exhausted. Parents usually respond to this statement by saying that once they get to the real world life is going to be even harder. Students, in turn, may respond that at least parents get paid for what they do. This, I presume, is partially where this project is coming from. As a student, I would definitely love this program. However, I feel like there should be some sort of way to control what the students spend this money on. For example, instead of cash, how about they receive a gift card to Borders or Barnes and Noble? This idea is similar to DCteacher’s comment on the Washington Post Comments article mentioned below. This person says, “I would much rather see them pass out $100 gift cards to Giant or Safeway so that parents would come to PTA meetings and had some decent food on their tables so the kids can learn. We don't need to pay children to do what their parents don't care if they do or not. It is time to make parents accountable for their children and not throw money at them.”
While the Washington Post article (about a similar program) below mentions that students will receive “financial literacy” training about how to spend money wisely, the children are still the only ones who are able to withdraw from their accounts. As a parent, I don’t think I would like this program. I feel like children need to learn that there are some things in life that people are expected to do and these are the things that people will not be rewarded for. I want my future kids to learn the value of hard work. I want them to understand the importance of school for its long-term rewards, not for immediate monetary rewards. As Florida Jim writes on the Chicago Tribune Comments article, “Rewarding people for doing something they should be doing is silly.”
As a taxpayer I definitely don’t think I would like this program. I would want my money to go towards something that the whole community can benefit from. Who is to say that the students won’t spend the money on drugs or alcohol? As the CPS article below notes, freshmen students could possibly earn up to $2,000 in one year. What could a freshman in high school possibly do with that much money? If that were scholarship money that was to be set aside for higher education, I would definitely support the project!

Opinion Sites:
Chicago Tribune Comments article: http://www.topix.net/forum/source/chicago-tribune/TKER3LVL1Q6DRNC32

Washington Post Comments article: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/28/AR2008082803439_Comments.html

Other News Articles:

Washington Post article: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/28/AR2008082803439.html

CPS article: http://www.cps.edu/News/Press_releases/2008/Pages/09_11_2008_PR1.aspx