I am writing in response to the letter from Rosemarie Lawrence of Bailey Island, who blames all of the country’s problems on its young people.

As a fellow baby boomer and a teacher of college-age students, I would like to counter her arguments.

When I was an undergraduate college student, I paid about $25 per credit for my classes. My parents generously paid for tuition and room and board; I left college with zero debt.

Twenty-five years later, my sons attended a state university, worked at least one part-time job throughout their schooling and finished with enormous debt, which they continue to pay off, postponing things like homeownership, a decent car and vacations to do so.

My students at the University of Southern Maine are in a similar situation. Ninety percent of them work at least 20 hours per week, and some full-time students manage to balance a full load of classes and 40 hours. All will complete school, despite all their frugality and hard work, with oppressive amounts of school debt. Most of them seek careers that will make the world a better place: social work, nursing, technology, education.

Ms. Lawrence can claim that “the younger people today are very spoiled and are used to getting things they want,” but if young people like that are out there, I have not met them.

I was also a bit startled to find out that our generation – baby boomers – were “mostly brought up to respect our president, whether you liked him or not.”

Did Ms. Lawrence sleep through the anti-war protests of the 1960s and ’70s? Has she forgotten Richard Nixon? The riots of the ’60s?

It’s time for Ms. Lawrence to get off the island and make the acquaintance of Maine’s young people. We are truly blessed to have an outstanding population of future leaders in this state.

Margaret Reimer

Bridgton

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