A new teacher walks into the halls of Chamblee High School, ecstatic about receiving a new job opportunity at this well-renowned school. They set their things down and look over their class full of all kinds of students, excited to see what this job will offer. But this picture is not the same one that greeted new teachers ten or twenty years ago. Chamblee High School has always been known for its diversity, however, throughout the years this diversity has changed in numerous ways.
“When I first came up to Chamblee in 2010 other schools always asked, ‘How’s it up there in that white-bred school?’” said Aukini Anderson, a German teacher at Chamblee. “And I always thought that they were wrong about there being a majority of white children here because we’ve always had a great variety of students.”
Despite the broad amount of diversity at the school, the population demographics have drastically changed over the years, most notably with the black population taking a dramatic decrease from taking up 50% of the school in 2008 to around 20% in 2023, while the Hispanic population has been on the rise since 2016, peaking at 30% of the total student population in 2021.
“I have also noticed in the hallways of the school an increase in Latino students and about the same number of Asian students, which is kind of a big group. There’s always been a lot of diversity at the school, and I think just the biggest change is the number of black students here has dropped,” said Anderson.
Though the number of black students has seen a change in recent years, they are not the only ones who have shifted in percentage over the years. The Asian population, while remaining relatively stable since 2008, has seen small rises in population, going from around 9% of the entire school population in 2007 to around 12% currently. Similarly, the percentage of white students has seen less change as they saw a dip in percentage until 2017,when they rose to around 32% of the student population.
“There are a lot of kids from a lot of different places with a lot of different backgrounds, and that always means that you have to adapt to them,” said Lorri Reynolds, a health teacher at Chamblee.
Many teachers who have resided at Chamblee for a while have found themselves changing how they teach to support the new wave of students each year. Although Chamblee has always remained diverse, the fact remains that the type of diversity has shifted since many teachers first entered Chamblee’s halls.
“I have had to change how I teach as a result of constantly trying to serve what’s in front of you, so if it’s non-English-speaking kids then you help them,” said Reynolds. “You always have to adjust depending on what kids are in your class. And you have to do your best to serve every single one of them.”
To provide additional support for the growing diversity of students, a new wave of student organizations catered to different ethnicities has formed in recent years. These clubs allow students to gain social support and kinship that is not easy to find in the classroom.
“There are several programs that help students of different ethnicities. Larger numbers tend to make your presence felt, and that could be because of these cultural programs,” said Brian Ely, a social studies teacher.
Chamblee High School is made to be a school welcome to all students, regardless of race or ethnicity.
“I guess I noticed the change visually from the white people up here and everyone else. In the end, though, the same kind of fundamentals are still at the school, and happiness in the school seems to be at the same level, and that’s all that really matters,” said Ely.
Ultimately, Chamblee can still boast its vibrantly diverse student body–all that’s changed is just what groups compose this mix.
“I think that we’re a true representation of what’s happening in the city in general. I think that we offer an opportunity for the most organically, diverse population in the city,” said Reynolds. “I would put our school up against anybody as being the most culturally, racially, educationally, and socioeconomically diverse of the surrounding schools, and I think that makes us great.”
