The State of Affairs.

So I know that almost one week before my wedding I shouldn't be writing downer posts...but this article in the LA Times today sort of prompted me to. Not only because it's such a terrible, horrible thing to happen at any school, but that it happened at my school.

I have felt increasingly sad about our schools. Things like the story above happen relatively rarely at a school like Harvard-Westlake, but they happen too many times to make the news at schools like where I now work. Last week we had the fourth murder within 3 blocks of my ELEMENTARY school since January. That is almost one murder a month within 3 blocks of my school.

I have watched as one of my most intelligent (albeit difficult) students from my first year of teaching has become the recruiter for a local gang at our ELEMENTARY school. When 10 year olds are recruiting more 10 year olds to join their gang I cannot help but feel like what I do is pointless. Any amount of knowledge or character that I can teach my kids in the 7 hours I have them, is erased on their way home when they are exposed to the dangers of our neighborhood.

It's sad. And I have no answers.