10 Things You Know Are True If You Went To A Small High School In Arizona
By Monica Spencer|Published July 16, 2016
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Monica Spencer
Author
Monica is a Diné (Navajo) freelance writer and photographer based in the Southwest. Born in Gallup and raised in Phoenix, she is Tódich'ii'nii (Bitter Water People) and Tsi'naajinii (Black Streak Wood People). Monica is a staff writer for Only In Your State, photo editor for The Mesa Legend, and previously a staff writer for The Navajo Post. You can reach her at monica.d.spencer@gmail.com.
High school is a formative time in modern adolescence but there’s something a little special about having that experience in a small town. To me, a city kid, it seems like an idyllic setting right out of the movies. Both of my parents grew up in small town Arizona, so it’s fun to talk with them about their high school experiences and to discover how different it was from mine (my graduating high school class had between 800 and 900 students). How many of these experiences can you relate to?
1. Chances are everyone in your graduating class knew each other from kindergarten.
3. Waiting at the bus stop didn’t always mean just walking to the end of the block. If you lived in rural Arizona, it meant trekking a mile (or so) to the bus stop to drive you miles to school.
5. Sports were a huge deal and making the team wasn’t too much of a hassle. I mean, did your team try outs require third and fourth cuts to whittle down all the contenders?
6. This also holds true for some of the larger cities, but Friday nights meant high school football night. You knew that you would encounter most of your classmates at the football stadium.
8. Formals were usually held in the school gym and attendees did a promenade or grand march to show off dates, dresses, and hairstyles. The dances also happened right after the big game and ended at 10 p.m.
Or you might have snuck out to the lake, an abandoned pump house, or other spot to get away from the prying eyes of the adults. If you were in the latter category, hopefully you didn’t get caught by the police.
10. Or you went cruising down (or dragging) main street.
