Awaiting the Beginning of the Journey!

   I believe that I have many assumptions about Newark that may not be completely true.  I have grown up in Jersey City my entire life and I understand the hardships of coming from a low-class, urban community; but I actually have not really liked being to Newark so much.  I believe it is due to the neighborhoods that I would be around when I would go to Newark.  I have not been around “good” neighborhoods in Newark and that is mostly where my assumptions come from.  I am used to seeing gang activity, drug dealers/addicts, and many other negative activities that would make an individual feel uneasy.  

   Many of these assumptions have gone away after learning about Arts High School and viewing their web site.  I am now very enthusiastic and anxious about my visit to this exquisite school.  They show me a different side of Newark that I ignorantly believed did not exist.  I guess that now I think back and I tell myself, “How could you think of Newark that way?  How do you feel about the fact that some individuals think of Jersey City in the same light?”  I guess this experience will show me the promise that I believe is within my city and will help me work harder towards getting children in my city a better opportunity to succeed in life.  This is similar to my answer to the question, “What is the relationship between schools and educating citizens?”  I believe that the schools should assist in erasing the ignorance of the citizens; at the same time, they both have to work in unison in order to create a prosperous and intelligent community.