It’s no secret that the Massapequa High School community is not diverse. According to the 2010 census, Massapequa was composed of about 93 percent white people, with Hispanics making up another four percent, and any other minorities totaling a sum of less than three percent of the population. The majority of Massapequa students are also Catholic, of Italian or Irish descent, and middle to upper class, according to longislandexchange.com. We are so demographically homogeneous that my eighth grade English teacher once referred to the town as a ghetto: a neighborhood of people ethnically and socioeconomically monotonous.

For many, this living style is comfortable. Without differences, Massapequans generally live without racial or religious tensions. But for education, the ramifications of an ethnically invariable environment can be detrimental.

There is strong evidence supporting the notion that an education is enriched by racial and socioeconomic diversity. According to the American Council on Education’s 1998 statement on the matter, diversity benefits students by promoting teamwork and a greater sense of community blind to racial boundaries. Most children will grow up to work with people of all backgrounds, and an education in a diverse environment prepares kids for this future by “challenging stereotyped preconceptions and encouraging critical thinking.”

At MHS, students largely miss out on this experience. In a school of two thousand people, most of whom are from the same background, there can be a lack of perspective on some critical issues. After all, if a situation arises where there is a lack of minorities or financially disadvantaged students, the only way their stories can be represented is through the speculation of students who may not have encountered racial or economic hardship, or through sources like literature.

“In a globally integrated economy it is now more important than ever that our students are exposed to a more diverse population. Diversity in schools should lead to dialogue between different groups of people, and dialogue leads to understanding and tolerance. Districts that are not diverse are not fully preparing students for the global economy,”social studies teacher Timothy Thieke said.

English teacher Brian Merges echoed his sentiments about the need for more diversity at the high school level in a world of work so thoroughly integrated. “The homogeneity of Massapequa is striking. It certainly would help, based on the ever-increasing diversity of America to have a somewhat more diverse student body.”

Without the interesting dynamic of a culturally or socioeconomically diverse student body, we must rely on teachers or teaching materials to bridge the gap between our experiences and the reality of a less privileged world. Perhaps this is why our literary curriculum seems to focus on problems of race, tolerance, and poverty. Massapequa students read classics on these issues such as To Kill a Mockingbird, The Scarlet Letter, Black Boy, Invisible Man, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The Crucible, A Tale of Two Cities, and several more.

“Our literary canon has been developed so that students can explore universal themes,” English chairperson Kevin Harrington said. “Through reading, we are able to understand the experiences of others and, many times, we are able to empathize with a character’s situation and learn lessons which will help us lead a better life filled with sensitivity for others.”

Despite the benefits of literature, the problems inherent in a demographically uniform educational environment persist. Perhaps the most detrimental of these problems is the preservation of stereotypes that are perpetuated due to the lack of minority students.

“In an almost all-white school, being cast as ‘“the Asian”’ adds a lot of extra weight to your identity. People judge if you stray from the stereotype. It is harder to stand out as your own person when you are perceived as a whole race,” senior Robyn Tse said.

As one of the few Asians that many MHS students know, Robyn inadvertently acts as an identifier for an entire ethnic group in the minds of some students. Many students hear the stereotype that all Asians are overachievers, and they see Robyn as a confirmation that this is true. It seems illogical but this is the typical manner in which racial stereotypes are perpetuated in racially homogeneous communities. And in Massapequa, this trend is unlikely to change as long as the ethnic composition of the town remains the same.

Undoubtedly, our students will have to change over time. With colleges and places of work putting more energy into hiring increasingly diverse communities—for better or worse—our students will have to adapt. One can only hope that a more diverse world will lead to a more understanding one, and that the racial stereotypes that divide us will one day fade to nothingness, so that we may live harmoniously in a truly colorblind society.