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Hidden Valley Elementary (Santa Rosa, CA)
I completed Kindergarten (at age 6) through 2nd grade in public school. This school was in a relatively well funded area, near Maria Carrillo High School. Most of the families in this area were middle class, though not all. The children here were relatively diverse culturally as well. I remember a lot of peers with parents from other countries. There was a large deaf/hearing impaired population on campus, meaning that we had exposure to American Sign Language and students with disabilities. -
Saint Rose Catholic School (Santa Rosa, CA)
I finished elementary school (3rd-5th grade) and middle school (6th-8th grade) at a Roman Catholic private school. This school was a monoculture, as far as class. Every family at this institution was at the very least upper-middle class, if not wealthy. The social circles were very tight. There was not a lot of cultural diversity. There were not a lot of other students of color, save for a select few. There was no religious diversity at all, because everyone was a practicing Catholic. -
Windsor High School (Windsor, CA)
I did all four year of high school in public school. I was involved in the choir, guitar classes, and environmental sciences. This was a well funded public high-school, near the suburbs. It was featured on a list of promising schools published by Bill and Melinda Gates. The sports teams were also funded by donations from local businesses. This school was more culturally and economically diverse than Saint Rose had been. There were more people, from more walks of life, both students and faculty. -
Santa Rosa Junior College (Santa Rosa, CA)
I finished my freshman and sophomore classes here, both in general education and music major requirements. In the 6 years I was here, I also graduated with two associates degrees and participated in the chorus consistently. This was the most diverse institution that I have gotten to be a part of. I had classmates and friends who varied widely across the socioeconomic class range. There were students with various disabilities in the same classrooms and classes as students without disabilities.
