On The Demographic Makeup of My Grade School

I often think about the time during which I lived in Phoenix proper and attended school there. Specifically, I attended Squaw Peak Elementary School from the fall semester of 1988 to the spring semester of 1994. We had actually moved out by Scottsdale, and starting in the fall of '94, I would be attending Scottsdale schools. They would be good schools, but I missed something from Squaw Peak. Looking back, Squaw Peak felt a bit more like a quintessentially American school. What it really was, though, was the diversity of Squaw Peak's student body.

When I was there, it seemed like a ordinary mix of ethnicities. There was a large amount of white kids, but also many of what it was proper at the time to call Hispanic kids. There was also a sprinkling of black kids and a number of Asian kids. Scottsdale's schools turned out to be more homogenous.

I feel glad to have had the experience of growing up like that. I wonder what it's like there now. Probably considerably more diverse than it was during my time. I don't recall ever encountering any kids from south Asia, or any from the Middle East. None from Europe that I can recall, although I think there was a Polish family who lived across the street from my family. It would be interesting to see Squaw Peak now. I've wanted to look at the old house for a long time too. They say though that you can't go home again. I don't see the harm in looking back, but maybe it's not productive to dwell there.