Perseverance- A Harper Valley Legacy
As I listened to the Harper Valley High School podcast I kept
thinking of how the student’s seem to persevere despite the great odds that are
placed against them. My mind was blown away at how drastically different this
school setting is compared to my small rural Idaho school. I realized that I
live in a country with vast differences in every school district yet we are all
compared and expected to meet similar criteria that will place us before other
countries. I began wondering if Finland, Taiwan, or Singapore had drastic
demographics like us or if most of their schools were all in communities that
were similar and safe.
As I listened to the conditions that the staff and students
deal with on a daily basis in order to get an education I was very worried about
their stress level. The dynamics that the principal monitors on a daily basis
to ensure that staff and students are safe from the drama outside of the school
walls blew me away. The fact that several rival gangs were all going to the
same school and that students were in a gang just by where they lived astounded
me. I kept going back to the story of the young man who was the quarterback
that did not want any part of the gang lifestyle but was considered to be a
gang simply by where he lived. My heart broke when he tried to stand up for
himself and his friends and he lost his life. I could not fathom if my sons or
daughters had to deal with this and felt for the father who had no idea what
his son tried to handle on his own. I kept shaking my head and wondered how we
could stop this vicious cycle. The police department was so matter of fact and
offered no solution to the gang dilemma. I felt frustrated and broken hearted
listening to this part of the podcast.
I thought a lot about school reform and wondered how it
could help a school district like Harper Valley were it seemed that surviving
was more important than a test at times. I thought about the gun control
dilemma that our nation struggles with and wondered how it could help inner
city school districts like Harper Valley that our plagued with violence and
death from stolen guns. I had no solutions to any of these thoughts and found
myself thankful for my rural Idaho issues that didn’t seem as stressful as I
once thought. I know that my students face a lot of issues on a daily basis but
they can feel safe playing outside or walking to school and knowing that their
classmates will more than likely be there when they go back to school after
summer break. The students at my high school will not have to worry about
cancelling their homecoming events due to the threat of rival gang activity.
The students and staff at Harper Valley School District
worked very hard in achieving quality education and I felt the compassion of
the teachers who tried to ensure that their students could just be kids. I
imagine that the stress and burn out level was very high in this district and
felt for the counselors who strived to meet the needs of the students who
sought their guidance and love. I could not fathom this war like atmosphere and
wondered what happened to students once they graduated or left Harper Valley
High School.
I too was left feeling heartbroken and thankful after listening to this school’s story. Heartbroken that there are kids in our country who face this adversity everyday, let alone do it and try to get a good education. I’m thankful that I live in a place where kids are ignorant to this type of life. However, being heartbroken and thankful doesn’t make changes. It doesn’t help these kids. It doesn’t make tomorrow any better for them. Harper was a turn around school and received millions of dollars to improve. This money gave the students access to social workers, smaller classrooms and staff that cares about them. Next year they lose their funding and 10% of their staff. I worry about what will happen to the kids who count on their school for safety and compassion. Is this our solution to quality education? Short-term financial support? There has to be more! There has to sustainability. There has to be structural change! However, does any of this matter in a neighborhood flooded in gangs and violence? What do we do? What can we do? What we can’t do is address the big issues for most of schools and leave Harper behind. Listening to this podcast made me realize that school reform has to be more than standards and teacher training. It has to be local. It has to relevant and it has to give each school with its individual needs the resources to educate and support their diverse populations. Without that type of approach, Harper could become the best school in the country but the student who go there will still get shot, their lives will still be ran by the violence in their neighborhood, not the quality of their education. I am heartbroken these kids know nothing else but the rules to live by to survive. We shout equality! What does equality look like for Harper?
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