Stella’s Comments (group member since Dec 30, 2013)

Stella’s comments from the LMU First To Go Community group.

I enjoyed your post, Maruth. It's funny how much fear-mongering there is when it comes to high school selection! I, too, went to Dodson, and like you, my final college decision came down to choosing between UCLA and USC (my dad, unlike yours, advocated the public school over the private because in those days, UCLA was much, much cheaper than USC). It seems that our journeys have much in common!

I relate to Cedric's reasoning regarding college selection; I, too, bought into the meritocracy myth and believed that my hard work would go to waste if I went to a local school. However, my father actively discouraged me from applying to schools outside of CA (several of which, like Mt. Holyoke, courted me with scholarship offers), saying that if I attended an out-of-state school, he wouldn't pay for me to come home during holidays and breaks. In the end, I attended UCLA, which, although close to home, is so radically different from my hometown that I ended up feeling like I'd gone to the other side of the moon anyway. Nonetheless, I often wonder how my life would've been different if I'd pursued my dream of going to school on the East Coast . . .

I was in marching band in high school, so the story resonated with me, too. As part of the LA All-City Marching Band (which was comprised of students from all LAUSD schools with music programs), I met many students like those in the documentary. I knew one kid from Dorsey who had been in a gang and who told me that playing the trumpet gave him a second chance at life. It was an amazing experience.

I appreciate your question, LT. I think that Cedric's experience with teachers at Ballou--especially in his "regular" classes such as English and History, where the teachers just seemed to talk at him instead of really engaging him--put him at a disadvantage as he advanced on his educational track. I was fortunate to be in an accelerated program in a school that saw few students advance to secondary education. My teachers employed pedagogical strategies that helped the few students who qualified for the accelerated program prepare for 4-year universities like UCLA and Berkeley. We were hyper-conscious of the fact that every assignment, test, etc. was intended as preparation for high school.

But back to the book . . .

I think one's first impulse might be to blame the teachers at Ballou for not preparing their "star students"--like Cedric--adequately. However, as a teacher, I know how frustrating it can be to have students who are totally disengaged, and I can only imagine that something akin to fatigue sets in when one has been teaching classrooms full of disinterested students for multiple years. I get the sense that Cedric fell through the cracks, a victim of a broken system. So, I think that the answer to your question, LT, is that Cedric needed a wider network of support from individuals (teachers, administrators, mentors). Barring the total reform of DC's educational system, I think that's the only way he could have fared better at Ballou.

My success as a high school student really hinged on the fact that a number of individuals took a special interest in me and saw fit to challenge me further. Nonetheless, like Erick, I felt overwhelmed when I finally made it to a 4-year university, and I struggled to compete with many of my better-prepared peers.

Erick touched on a really interesting issue in the text, which is the role of religion in the impoverished DC community. It's clear that Barbara and Cedric derive a sense of emotional support from their community, but it's also clear that the religious organizations--the Pentecostal church, the Jehovah's Witnesses, and Torrence's Islamic congregation--seem to preach a message that does little to encourage their congregants to pursue higher goals. Moreover, we see Barbara--who goes without food after paying rent--reserving 10% of her income for her church tithe.

What role does religion play in Cedric's life and that of his community? Is it a positive influence? A negative influence? I'm interested to hear your thoughts.

Thanks for your post, Alejandra! I can relate to much of what you've written. In fact, I remember doing a great deal of crying during the summer between middle school and high school because I was terrified of getting sent to Narbonne High School (I wanted to go to the marine science magnet program at San Pedro HS). My dread of attending Narbonne had much more to do with my friends' parents' attitudes toward the school than it did with any real knowledge on my part. I remember one friend's mom telling my dad that my hopes of getting into a good college would be flushed down the drain if I went to Narbonne. My dad--a single parent who worked 14-hour shifts at a factory--had no clue. It was really scary to feel responsible for my own future at the age of 14. Fortunately, the story had a happy ending (thanks to the combined efforts of my dad and my friend's mom), and I ended up attending San Pedro and going to UCLA.

I owe much of my success, however, to the guidance and support of my excellent teachers and counselors, and I'm fortunate not to have experienced the kind of violence that Cedric did (although the presence of 20+ armed police officers at high school football games did suggest that violence was a very real possibility).

Thanks, LT! This provides excellent context. More comprehensive post to follow soon!