Three CASD seniors talk diversity, resilience, reputation, and representation
By Kyle Carrozza, Staff Writer, The Times
CALN – Entering its senior year, Coatesville’s Class of 2014 saw the worst of this grand experiment known as diversity. School district leaders trusted to guide the area’s youth to a brighter tomorrow reminded people that what we think of as outdated beliefs are still alive, ready to rear the ugly head of racism when the community isn’t looking. Accusations flew, grown folks resorted to yelling and name-calling in public forums, and many of the questions raised remain unanswered nearly a year later.
It would have been easy for Coatesville Area School District students to give up, to lose faith in the system meant to enrich them and lose faith in themselves. But instead, Joshua Mensah, Paul Draper, and Chasan Hall doubled down on their faith in the positive effects diversity in the community. As a result, they will receive their diplomas at tonight’s graduation ceremonies and be Ivy League-bound in the fall.
Joshua Mensah
In an interview last week, the three seniors, who have been friends since their time at North Brandywine Middle School, said that while Huffington Post and CNN headlines depicted the negative side of living in a diverse community, the less sensational, everyday positivity that comes from getting a Coatesville education far outweighs the words of a few.
As the senior class school board representative, Paul Draper saw firsthand the shouting matches and accusations tossed around at meetings every other Tuesday night. In response, he consistently spread word of the good things happening in the district. While he did recognize the negative effects that last year’s events had on the district’s reputation, the Princeton Tiger-to-be believes there were positives to be seen even during the ugliest times.
“Through this whole process, we’ve been fortunate enough to see just how strong our educational system is. No matter how much bad a person can do, it seems like they’re not going to be able to damage that,” said Draper.
Joshua Mensah, who will be attending Cornell next year, and Chasan Hall, going to Yale, said that almost nothing had changed in the classroom.
“I think the general consensus was our superintendent was a jerk; we already kind of knew that,” said Hall.
In fact, all three agreed that the school district will take more positives than negatives from last year’s events.
“That regime change made a lot more people get involved, not only get involved with the community but come up with new ideas to make the school more functional,” said Mensah.
Hall agreed, saying that citizens are now more vigilant in watching the actions of their leaders.
“This ultimately ends with more transparency and more community involvement. I think we can say that despite the obvious and unfortunate problems it has caused, it might ultimately have a positive impact,” he said.
Such a mentality should not be surprising from these young men should not be surprising, though. Living in a diverse community, much like getting into an Ivy League school can be difficult yet ultimately rewarding.
Draper said that he struggled in school throughout his early childhood. However, his parents and teachers pushed him to do well even when he didn’t quite fit on the football team and lost every match he wrestled in.
“They would just tell me that I was smart. At the time, they probably didn’t actually know that, but luckily I was, and that gave me the motivation and really the confidence I needed to do well in the classroom,” he said.
Eventually, he found the AFJROTC program and Bible Club, two activities that made him feel accepted.
Mensah was told that there was little hope for him as a student during his elementary school years in Louisiana. But once he moved to Coatesville, he said that he found band, Boy Scouts, and a school setting at North Brandywine that caused him to ignore those who doubted him.
“Just by meeting people who were smart, made me go, ‘Oh, I wonder if I can be smart,’” he said.
Mensah thought of one moment in particular that made him reflect on how Coatesville has allowed him to succeed. While on stage at the school’s awards ceremony, he said that he thought about how his dad has not bothered to call him to congratulate him on graduating. But he took comfort in the support that those around him have given.
“The awards ceremony yesterday kind of made me go, ‘Whatever my dad didn’t do, Coatesville did,’ and that was a good moment in my life,” he said.
Paul Draper
Hall could not pick out a single moment that compelled him to be an exemplary student but instead said that his surroundings in the district have pushed him to do his best.
“There isn’t really a moment. I think it was the way that the people around you can help foster an environment that helps you succeed,” he said.
A large part of that environment is diversity. Diversity can mean people with different backgrounds, different opinions, and different interests.
“We’re very fortunate to have a place where no matter who you are or what you believe, you can put your idea out there, and it’s…treated with equal validity,” said Draper.
Hall also expressed his appreciation for having different kinds of people around him. In particular, he cited his political views that conflict with Draper.
“I still think he’s [Paul] wrong, but Paul has definitely challenged me and made me see other view points and made me consider the fact that other positions than my own have equal validity, and that’s, I think, a very important thing,” he said.
The three said that one of their highlights of senior year was attending the Senator for a Day program in Harrisburg. While movies and TV shows may depict the ‘popular’ and ‘smart’ crowds as mutually exclusive, they said that their fellow Coatesville participants, two of whom were on homecoming court, argued with equal passion and helped to represent Coatesville well enough that students from other schools congratulated them after the event, even though it was not a competition.
“The opportunities here are special because not only can I associate with someone who is in a different club; I can be in multiple clubs and feel the love of multiple families,” said Mensah.
They said that another highlight of their senior year was competing in the county academic team competition. At 7pm on a school night, football players, basketball players, and cheerleaders came out to the Chester County Intermediate Unit to provide a strong support section for their less athletic but no less gifted counterparts.
“More than anything else, I feel like there’s an overpowering sense of plurality here that this gives rise to and a lot fewer barriers that we erect between each other,” said Hall.
This sense of plurality stems from the sense of community that they proudly represent. Hall pointed to CASH Principal Robert Fisher as a high example of someone who represents the community. He said that when he first entered high school, he did not understand how an administrator could feel so strongly but now that he’s about to graduate, he feels the same way.
“As we went through our years here and got to know him a little better, it became definitely apparent that that was really earnest and sincere. Really I don’t know anyone who is more proud of his community than Mr. Fisher,” said Hall.
Draper agreed.
“Every time he hands out an award, every time he goes to an event, his eyes tear up because of how proud he is,” he said. “There are certain people in the school that we are very fortunate to have.”
They believe that people like Fisher can help the district continue to grow even through hardship.
Chasan Hall
“I do hope that this doesn’t necessarily undermine our confidence in the Coatesville education system as a whole because there’s definitely a lot of good going on here,” said Hall.
The three would like to see future students and the community take full advantage of these good things. They said that they would like to see the school district and community interact even more in the future. In addition, Draper advised young people to utilize school to follow their passions. Mensah said that given the chance, Coatesville will change students for the better.
“Now that I am the person I am today, I can’t spend time here being that person, which is kind of sad,” he said. “I’m finally this person, and I’m about to leave you guys when I can show you how much you’ve changed me.”
And Hall believes that the negative things said about the school district are mostly outside opinions. He wants younger students to focus on doing their best and not succumbing to what other people have to say.
“We’ve talked a lot in the last year…about this reputation Coatesville has—ignore it. Do what you can do, and don’t let anybody tell you that this can’t be done in Coatesville…because I’ll tell you what Coatesvillians do, they get into Ivy League schools.”
