I moved around frequently as a child, going wherever my mom would take my older sister and me. My parents had been divorced since I was two, so it was just the three of us. We would randomly switch houses, states, schools, and be constantly making new friends. I don’t remember a whole lot of the schools, but the one that sticks out the most was a private-christian school in Mobile, Alabama. We attended this one from third to fifth grade which was a long time period being in one school for us.
This school was predominantly white kids and white parents, along with the majority of other schools we had attended. So, let’s just say the concept of diversity did not exist to me, but as a kid with an undeveloped brain, it’s something that you don’t put much thought into either. That was until I went to “visit” my dad for summer break when I was 12 and, unbeknownst to me, I would end up staying there for the rest of my childhood.
I was so devastated that I cried for what seemed like days when I found out I had to move in with my dad. I was confused, sad, and had so much anger towards both my parents because of this surprise move. It felt like the end of the world for me, moving away from not only my mom, but also my friends from school. During this time, my dad also introduced us to a woman who would become my stepmom in a couple years. My sister and I started to live in their small, two bedroom apartment with her two gray tabby cats and began our new life.
Along with this move, I learned I would be attending a public school and honestly I was terrified. I knew this school would be a lot bigger than my schools I had attended before and in a much bigger city. The first day in my new school was a huge change for me. I woke up and spent half an hour trying to figure out what to wear. I put on a pink T-shirt and some jean capris, put my hair in a ponytail and tied a bow around it. I walked to the bus stop with my sister, which was just down the street from our apartment complex, and quickly sat down on a brown, leather seat right in the middle of the bus.
Once the bus parked I walked through the side doors and I immediately noticed that there were so many different types of people in this school. Because there were no uniforms, the students were able to express themselves through their hair styles, makeup, and clothing. It felt like a breath of fresh air because everyone was so different from each other, whereas at my old school everybody felt like a clone of one another. All of my old girl friends wore their hair the same, dressed the same, looked the same. Once I moved to my new school, I was able to not only express myself more clearly, but also I learned about other cultures through my fellow students’ self expression. This was the first time in my life I had been around such a diverse group of people and I truly believe it made me who I am today.
While experiencing all of this, I also started to observe issues in the education system. There was a serious lack of funding and prioritization towards education in my new school, which was predominantly made up of black students. I noticed there was a lack of resources for students such as new textbooks, fewer teachers, and larger class sizes. This resulted in an environment lacking focus which taught students that their education wasn’t important. Because of this, fewer students felt compelled to go to college and further their studies. I knew students who felt this way out of fear that they would be too behind to succeed. This issue is one of many that still face predominantly black schools to this day. However, I don’t think I would change my experience in this school because it opened my eyes to these problems that I would have been ignorant to had I not transferred to this school.
I was able to learn so many new things and become friends with kids that came from all different types of backgrounds, yet we still clicked. Through these friendships, I was able to have a more worldly view that I would have never gotten if I continued living in Mobile. What I thought at the time was my world ending, actually was creating a brand new one, a better one. If I had never moved to Nashville, I would be stuck in a bubble of people that don’t talk about these types of societal issues. Little did I know at the time how impactful this would be. While I had moved around a lot before, this move was definitely the most important one for me because it brought me out of my shell and broadened my understanding of diversity.
- Switching Schools – by Victoria Lawrence - April 6, 2024
Your story was worth reading. It is amazing to know that you benefitted from the sudden drastic shifts in you family and educational experiences culturally.