High School Norms

Many different norms come to mind when conversations lead to the subject of high school. Descriptions of safe places to learn and areas to thrive and enjoy your teen years are typical for what people expect of public schools. High schools don’t always meet these expectations, but most abide by the universal understanding of how a high school is supposed to appear and function. The high school I attended is truly something to write home about simply because of the many differences it possesses from the norm. Most of these differences stem from the unfortunate socioeconomic status that a vast majority of the students had in common. The students, faculty, and staff were extremely racially diverse and very poor, so by default, the school and its

Teachers commonly had a poor attitude with the students as the kids heard nearly every school day that they wouldn’t amount to anything. Numerous teachers owned the reputation of being provocative with the girls and wore it as a metal. Girls known to wear lowcut shirts were always seated in the front of classrooms, pencils were dropped with the sole intention of a girl having to bend over to retrieve it, and the sluttiest looking student always ended up as the chosen example for demonstrations. Excuses to touch pretty girls were conveniently found when doors were locked and the security camera system was under maintenance. Several teachers were registered sex offenders, but only after they were quietly fired, and their abuse left unreported. It was only after they were hired as teachers or faculty in another district that they be brought to trial and the situation handled in a version of the correct way. Administrators swept gun instances and acts of violence under the rug and ignored their disastrous effects on the student body. Students stalked around hallways while classes persisted and searched for kids to jump. This form of violence had to occur four times in the span of two weeks for actions to be taken to terminate it. Beyond this, deans dealt meth to students and promoted drug use among the students which directly accounts for the rates of overdoses in the student body. The system of the school continuously failed victims as complaints of sexual harassment or abuse had to be written in a formal letter to the student’s dean by the end of two weeks after the fact or the misconduct expired. This rule was a source of unease, but nothing would be done anyway as the deans’ behavior reiterated the disvalue of these actions daily. Faculty members took advantage of the vulnerable students that were already living the effects of born into dire