Between U-D Jesuit and Southeastern High, A Kid Grows Up

I was horrified when I walked into Southeastern the first day of my last year of high school. It was like a jail -- with girls! -- and the security guards were searching people as if they were terrorists.

The school had metal detectors, and the environment was hostile.

At U-D, I played varsity basketball and I knew everybody. I was used to a calmer environment. I was used to breezing through the hallways saying hello to administrators and keeping it moving. Instead, at Southeastern, I was greeted with, "Where is your pass?" (Hello to you, too, rudeness.)

I found myself battling for elbow room in a public school cafeteria. At U-D, the lunch was to die for. At Southeastern, on a good day you got three chicken nuggets, and, if you were lucky, the milk was only one day past due.