Imet a small town North Dakota teacher recently, a tall woman with large pink-framed glasses. It seems her job is under threat because she doesn’t “fit in.” She thought this was an advantage. I would agree. Like reading and travel, public schools open the doors to all (at least after Brown vs. the Board of Education). And this openness helps us grow. It may not be home, but it helps us feel at home in more places, appreciating more people.

On my father’s post office salary, my parents couldn’t really afford private schools. But they did put us in good public schools. Given the weakness of one neighborhood school, my mother drove probably 20 miles round trip to Oak Park, Michigan.

This school had a very good reputation. It was in a middle - class suburb. The student body was about 70% Jew

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