Editorial Content for Admissions: A Memoir of Surviving Boarding School
Contributors
Reviewer (text)
Kendra James’ high school education started in the public school system. However, following a series of incidents that didn’t involve her specifically, her parents decided to move her to Taft, a private boarding school. In ADMISSIONS, Kendra writes about her three years of being a Black student there.
At first, Kendra’s notions about boarding school were very romantic, but she didn’t quite understand the racial dynamic. She dreamed of being BFFs with her white roommate, but unfortunately they didn’t see eye to eye on many things. So it didn’t take long for her to realize that the gap between the white students and the students of color was too wide and couldn’t be bridged.
"Although I live in Europe and may not fully grasp all of the issues that James raises here, I found it to be a fascinating read and have learned a lot from it."
Kendra’s memories are bittersweet. While she reminisces about the good times she had with her friends, she also recalls the racism and microaggressions that Taft did not want to address. She provides insight into particular events that were important to her and in some ways shaped her. For example, she writes honestly and passionately about the time she was suspended after being falsely accused of a theft. She reports that the school failed to take action when Black and Latino students were blamed for the segregation on campus. Still, it is worth emphasizing that Kendra is aware of her privileged status and the benefits of an excellent education that Taft offers.
In addition to writing about the racism that Taft never properly dealt with, not to mention the segregation and marginalization under the guise of inclusiveness, Kendra turns the focus on herself. As a teenager, she liked to read a lot, wrote fiction together with her virtual friends, and enjoyed watching movies, especially fantasy flicks. As a result, the book is full of pop-culture references to various TV shows and films from the early 2000s, which I got such a kick out of.
ADMISSIONS is an open and honest social critique of race in the US, as well as the coming-of-age story of a Black girl who is getting an education in a predominantly white boarding school. Taft tries hard to be seen as inclusive, but their administration does not comprehend the depth of injustice and inequality that exists on and outside their campus. Worse, they do not care to understand.
Although I live in Europe and may not fully grasp all of the issues that James raises here, I found it to be a fascinating read and have learned a lot from it.
Teaser
Early on in Kendra James’ professional life, she began to feel like she was selling a lie. As an admissions officer specializing in diversity recruitment for independent prep schools, she persuaded students and families to embark on the same perilous journey she herself had made --- to attend cutthroat and largely white schools similar to The Taft School, where she had been the first African-American legacy student only a few years earlier. Her new job forced her to reflect on her own elite education experience, and to realize how disillusioned she had become with America’s inequitable system.
Promo
Early on in Kendra James’ professional life, she began to feel like she was selling a lie. As an admissions officer specializing in diversity recruitment for independent prep schools, she persuaded students and families to embark on the same perilous journey she herself had made --- to attend cutthroat and largely white schools similar to The Taft School, where she had been the first African-American legacy student only a few years earlier. Her new job forced her to reflect on her own elite education experience, and to realize how disillusioned she had become with America’s inequitable system.
About the Book
Early on in Kendra James’ professional life, she began to feel like she was selling a lie. As an admissions officer specializing in diversity recruitment for independent prep schools, she persuaded students and families to embark on the same perilous journey she herself had made --- to attend cutthroat and largely white schools similar to The Taft School, where she had been the first African-American legacy student only a few years earlier. Her new job forced her to reflect on her own elite education experience, and to realize how disillusioned she had become with America’s inequitable system.
In ADMISSIONS, Kendra looks back at the three years she spent at Taft, chronicling clashes with her lily-white roommate, how she had to unlearn the respectability politics she'd been raised with, and the fallout from a horrifying article in the student newspaper that accused Black and Latinx students of being responsible for segregation of campus. Through these stories, some troubling, others hilarious, she deconstructs the lies and half-truths she herself would later tell as an admissions professional, in addition to the myths about boarding schools perpetuated by popular culture.
With its combination of incisive social critique and uproarious depictions of elite nonsense, ADMISSIONS will resonate with anyone who has ever been The Only One in a room, dealt with racial microaggressions, or even just suffered from an extreme case of homesickness.
Audiobook available, read by Mela Lee
