Several years ago, as a radio morning show co-host and news anchor in the western United States, I reported on a 13-year-old boy in a major metropolitan area who had taken a gun to school. After shooting two holes in the cafeteria ceiling, and taking some hostages, he was subdued without further incident.

My colleagues in communication bandied about his checkered history, including his broken home, the physical abuse he regularly took there, his serious legal record and his apparent depression. Truly, he was a troubled, desperate youth.

Two weeks later, I found myself reporting on another 13-year-old boy in the same city who took a gun to a different school. This boy did not fire the gun, though he attempted to take hostages. His reason for his actions chilled me to my core:

“I wanted to get my name in the papers.”

When we focus the bulk of the reporting of youth activities on sports or criminal activity, we send the wrong message to our youth. If you cannot score the winning basket at the buzzer (ala Gerry McNamara), then what good are you?

High achieving teens in academia or the arts get far less public kudos than do their sports-oriented peers. Part of the problem stems from our failure to recognize them for their preparatory successes on the way to state, regional or national competitions, if such exist. These activities simply are not as neatly packaged, open to the public or as entertaining.

But the work these youth put in is just as intensive, just as strenuous and often more important from a long-range perspective.

Those who performed in Marcellus High School's recent production of George Gershwin's “Crazy For You” are a good example. The show has incredibly demanding song-and-dance routines, along with difficult blocking in some scenes. One cannot perform a role without putting in some rather disciplined, rigorous preparation.

The show's leading man, Aaron Masters, sang several songs, danced in several numbers and executed some difficult blocking with aplomb. Masters is extraordinarily multi-talented, with an impressive resume filled with successes in multiple venues. This band president, choir treasurer, Area All-State percussionist, All-School Show president (for two years), football captain and future Advanced Designation Regents graduate spends his free time working on the family farm besides serving in his church. Can you begin to imagine the sacrifices he and his family have made over the years?

Another outstanding youth is Christopher Mack at Auburn High School. Another Advanced Designation Regents graduate-to-be, he has been active for years in band, orchestra and theater. According to his counselor, Kelly Benzing, Mack has a genuine desire to help others, and will pursue an elementary education degree at SUNY Oswego. He has served as a Hugh O'Brien youth leadership ambassador and as a volunteer peer tutor after school. He also serves in a variety of capacities, including teacher, at his church. Most notably, two years ago Mack spearheaded an annual “free market” where donated goods were distributed to the less fortunate.

I could go on for pages extolling the qualities and successes of others like Masters and Mack, and that's the point.

If we truly want to diminish high school drop out rates, if we want to keep our youth focused in positive lifestyles, if we want to help our children build positive self-image and self-esteem, as citizens we must do more of what Rosa Grube wrote in her column last week: “Catch [them] being good.”

In EVERY way.

Grace MacDowell, M.A., of Auburn, is completing her doctorate in clinical psychology. She can be reached at drmac2be@yahoo.com