My Public School Experience

By Nina Salameh

Growing up the child of immigrants, my parents taught me that education was the great equalizer—what gives people social mobility. Later, I was confronted with the disappointing reality that education does not provide adequate resources for many students. I enrolled in a 3,000 student urban high school, and it was systematically underfunded. I struggled to finish class work, it being a norm for our school to provide laptops with broken keyboards, textbooks missing pages. When it came time for college apps, my counselor didn’t even know my name, but was expected to write me an important letter of recommendation. My counselor only submitted it after I personally showed up at his office every day to remind him. 

The legacy of underfunding in public schools means students like me struggle to get the support they need in a vital time for their future, while others are privileged to hire personal advisors and essay reviewers. Meanwhile, I knew students whose applications were rejected after overburdened counselors simply forgot to submit their paperwork. Many of my peers' experiences mirrored my own, showing me the need for fully-funded schools. In order for education to help us achieve a more equitable society, it is vital to provide students with the resources that allow them to succeed. To invest in our schools means to invest in young people’s futures.