BBTW Week 10: Back to School

Prompt 2: School is starting for a lot of people these days. Tell us your most memorable “back to school” related story.

I didn't get this post in before the cut off for Ginger's link up last week but I still wanted to write my story so here it is.  I don't remember anything significant happening on any of my days heading back to school.  I can remember loading down the car to drive to Marion for college (my freshman year sticks out most in my head).  I can remember helping out with registration at Murphy when I was a cheerleader.  But mostly, the back to school moments never really seemed like a big deal to me.  What does stick out to me was the year I had to change schools in elementary school.  

Growing up in Alabama, even in the 80's and 90's, racial tension was always an issue.  So much so that I was forced to change schools when I was heading into the 4th grade because they were cracking down on the districting that was in place as a result of segregation case that had been ruled on in 1971 in Mobile County.  The result was school districts set up to try to even the balance of the races in schools, which resulted in students being bused across town to schools that were uneven prior to the districting.  For the first time in my school career (and that of both my brothers), we were required to show a proof of residence in order to attend school for the year.  Prior to that, we had been using my grandmother's address to go to school out of district. The school we attended was closer to our house and the high school, middle school, and elementary school were all in one location which was good since we were spread over all 3 for a couple of years.  The only way out was a transfer and those were very hard to come by.  

I clearly remember when the news broke that we were going to have to change schools.  It was only a couple of weeks before the start of the new school year and we were already registered to attend our old school for the year.  My parents were scrambling to try to get us into our new schools for the year (at the time, my oldest brother was in college but my other brother was heading to 8th grade).  I called all my friends from my old school in tears because we would no longer being going to school together.  That first year at my new school I only knew the students in my class.  I didn't know my way around the school and I rarely had to enter the building since we were in a portable (which was new to everyone in my class but not to me). I hated it.  My missed my old friends and my old school.  That was probably the hardest year I had in school socially because it was all so new.  I only attended that school for two years before I headed to middle school.

In the end, that change was for the best for me.  I was able to get away from some bad habits I had picked up at my old school and my academics improved.  I ended up attending one of the best high schools in the state because of the districting (a 30 minute drive across town past another high school) and I loved it.  But this experience has also stuck with me which is why I don't want the boys to go through the same changes I had to.  It's hard starting over that close to the end of a school and I am happy to see that our district will allow students to transfer back to a school for their final year at the school if they move out of district.