Hi Friends,
I just wanted to see what others' thoughts on this are. Annie will be six in a few months. In the town we live in, kindergarten is housed in one building, grades 1-6 in another, 7 and 8 in another and then off to high school for 9-12. Right now she is in kindergarten and doing very well.
I am not sure if I want her to remain in the public school system in the town we live. The reason for this is because my town is not at all racially diverse. I mean..not at all.
Last year when my son graduated from high school, there was not one latino/latina in the class and only one african american child. So my thoughts....
Annie is very happy and has wonderful friends and she would move on with them if I kept her where she is. However, she would be the only one who is not caucasion. She looks different from her peers. Now..this is not an issue now but it might be someday. When I approached a person in the school with my concerns I was told, " But Annie thinks she is caucasian so she will be fine." Huh??????? Annie doesn't THINK she is caucasian...she KNOWS she is Guatemalan!!!
There are some magnet/charter/private schools with much more diversity a few towns over. I just don't know what to do. Would you keep her where she is with her friends ( school district is excellent) or move her next year to a school with more diversity??
We do much to keep her heritage and culture known to her (annual trips to Guatemala, ongoing contact with people in Guatemala, books, etc) so I am not afraid she will lose that if she stays where she is.
I am just looking for some thoughts.....
Thanks,
Diane