ABSTRACT
Horace Kallen school sits in a residential, working-class neighborhood a few blocks south of the interstate highway that divides Windigo into two unequal parts. Its dark, brick exterior conceals somewhat the sounds and sights of the life within its walls, life that shows out briefly through student drawings peeping out at passerbys through classroom windows. Inside, visitors are greeted by the words “welcome” in the many languages of the school. The walls are lined with self-portraits and autobiographical statements of each of the children. Upstairs, the school library is contains countless volumes of multicultural stories and textbooks, arranged by continent and language. In one corner there is a piano, and several children are participating in a music lesson led by a volunteer music major from the university. Back in the hallway, a hubbub drifts up from the gymnasium/cafeteria downstairs. There, children are gathered for the free or reduced lunches, served and supervised by bilingual aides from over a 12 different countries. The room is lined with the flags of the United Nations.
