For me, the phrase "back to school" brings mixed feelings of excitement and sorrow. Excitement because a brand new school term begins and sorrow because the laid-back attitude of summer draws to a bittersweet end. For many teen mothers though, that phrase typically means an additional demand on their time and patience, particularly if returning to school and/or working will be added to an already full agenda of raising a child.

In my school, I have seen these challenges first hand. For example, in my class last year there was a girl named Alicia. Alicia was a straight "A" student, a cheerleader, and one of the most popular girls in school. I didn't know her personally until this year, but shortly after school began we became friends. Around November, Alicia was only coming to school about once or twice a week and even then she would show up extremely late. To my surprise, she was pregnant and only told a select few. As the year went on, she struggled to balance her academic workload and extra-curricular activities with caring for her new child. As a result, she failed most of her second semester classes and was advised to attend summer school. Alicia couldn't go to summer school because she had to work in order to support her and her child.

The relationship between academic failure and teen parenthood is extremely strong because of the competing demands of school and the attention that a child requires. The stress of all this responsibility must be the main reason why only 40% of mothers who have children before the age of 18 actually graduate high school. Additionally, less than 2% of mothers under the age of 18 have a college degree by the age of 30. The added pressure on teen moms usually makes them choose between school or staying home with their baby. More times than not, staying home with their baby wins.

The odds don't fare well for their children either. Children of teen mothers do far worse in school compared to those born to older parents. These children are more likely to repeat a grade, less likely to complete high school, and have lower performances on standardized tests.

The impact that teen pregnancy has on schools and communities is phenomenal. While many corporations and programs are putting notebooks and pencils into book bags for students that are returning to school, maybe they need to add condoms and information about safe sex and abstinence, too.

Stay Out Loud is our monthly series featuring articles written by teen, for teens. Got something you want to say? Email your submissions and story ideas to stayteen@thenc.org.