David City High School

The strength of small town high schools resides in the community spirit of families, instructors, students, and staff. A weakness is in limited experiences and provincial perspectives. David City High School is probably no better and no worse than a thousand other schools its size in towns of the same size. One of the silliest things I ever saw was the high school principle having to check with the school superintendent before he could authorize a new club on campus. The superintendent had his own little office, in the school, was paid an exorbitant salary, and did virtually nothing, compared to the responsibilities of superintendents in large districts like New York, Chicago, maybe even Omaha and Lincoln. It was like having two principals and they had to agree before they could do something — like the Roman Republic of over 2000 years ago where one tribune could veto the plans of another. Also, like many small town schools, there is an irrational prejudice against children who are home-​schooled, and distrust of families who do home-​school. If you have home schooled your child and want to see her advance to her full potential, and find you need to send her to a public school for a couple of years, interview some of the staff — principal, counselor, placement adviser, whoever, before deciding which school to send her to. More progressive (open-​minded, tolerant, humble, but neither narrowly conservative nor falsely liberal) schools welcome home-​schooled children with open arms, appreciative of the unique talents and background they have, and eager to help them excel in their academic and artistic paths.