Olivas, Alexis

Professor Batty

English 101

27 March 2017

The Big Picture

A Roman fabulist named Phaedrus once said, Things are not always what they seem; the

first appearance deceives many; the intelligence of a few perceives what has been carefully

hidden. Although this is true for people, it is also true for places. There are many places in the

world and our community which we only see serving a single purpose when not looking deeper

than what we merely see. Such is the case of a school in Panorama City called Panorama High

School. This place unquestionably serves as a place to educate children. Although, beneath that,

there is another purpose which cannot be identified right away. Panorama High school serves as

an educational institution but through careful observations, it can be seen that Panorama serves

as a link between a majority of teens in the community and as a haven for its student

population. That is what has been carefully hidden under Panorama High School.

Creating Panorama High School had its purposes. An article under the Facilities Services

Division of Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) called LAUSD Cuts Ribbon on

Panorama High School it is stated by Guy Mehula, Chief Facilities Executive, that Panorama

was a much-needed school capacity to one of the most overcrowded neighborhoods in the San

Fernando Valley. The school was built with plans to help relieve overcrowding at Monroe,

Van Nuys and Birmingham High Schools. The initial plans for the school were one where it

would alleviate problems in the school system, not community. Before building this school, kids

from the Panorama City area had to go to schools which were not so close to their homes and
therefore, did not associate with one another much. After the building of Panorama it is seen that

the teens in the community are united through this school. In my observation at Panorama during

after school hours, I asked a group of kids some questions. Two boys in this group mentioned to

me that their older siblings had gone to this school when it first opened. They went on to

explaining how one of their siblings was going to Van Nuys High School and the other further

away at John H. Francis Polytechnic High School located in Sun Valley. Their two older siblings

had apparently been living in the same block, being next door (building) neighbors but had no

idea who each other were. Once Panorama High was built and opened by their tenth grade year

they both transferred there, closer to home. That is when they both met and became good friends.

If it werent for the school being built, they would have never met each other. Panorama created

links between teens such as this one with people in their community now that they all went to a

school nearby compared to the neighborhood being separated between other schools further

away.

Not only does Panorama serve as a bond between the communitys teens but it also

serves as a place where they feel safe. Data gathered by U.S. News & World Report shows that

Panorama High School has a total of 1,495 students. From those students 90% of the student

population is Hispanic and 77% are economically disadvantaged. When observing the school I

noticed that there are quite a number of teens who stick around. They are either hanging out with

friends, in the field playing ball or running together, or even doing their homework. I went up to

a group seeming to just be hanging around for fun. I asked why they rather be at school than at

home and the responses were similar for the most part being, Theres no one at home so I rather

be here and Its calm here and no one bothers us. These phrases themselves explain how the

school helps them through some problems at home. A girl who was doing homework alone at
home, which will remain anonymous, explained to me that she rather do her homework at school

because there are too many people at home and its crowded and noisy. It is a common

characteristic among Hispanic families to have a big family. She continued by saying that at

school, she has got the time, space, and peace to do her work. She mentioned how if the school

was further away shed need to make her way home much earlier, due to the danger of night

time, and wouldnt really be able to do her homework as well as it should be. The boy who

previously said that there is no one at home kindly explained to me that his mother has two

jobs because she is trying to provide the best she can for him. He went on to saying

sympathetically that he understands the situation but due to that he spends most of his time alone

so now he stays at school where he can be less lonely.

Straying from my observations that day, in retrospect to my days as a high school student

there myself, it did impact me attending there in other ways other than educationally. I met teens

in my community whom I did not even know existed, with honesty. Also, with my home being so

small and not having my own room and space, it became difficult to do my work. Yes, I could

have gone to the public library, but unlike Panorama, it didnt transmit that sense of

homeliness. The school gave me the liberty to be in the outdoors rather than inside to do my

work and the space I needed. Along with that, I would spent many afternoons there because there

was no one at home and I had no other place to go. I have friends who were trouble makers and

were simply not tolerated or wanted at home but Panorama opened their doors. I saw how

through sports and coaches who cared trouble makers became serene people. Panorama became

more than just their school but their own little haven.

Things are not always what they seem. To one, it might be just a coffee shop but to

others it may be their escape from loneliness and only place of socialisation. It might just be a
store with natures remedies but to others it is a place to go when the solution to their problem

cant be given through modern medicine. Panorama High School provides many services which

arent directly perceived. It might just be a school where teens go to be educated but to many of

the teens themselves it is like a second home. A place where they wont be kicked out but

encouraged. A place where it provides space and tranquility. A place to make memories with

friends instead of being alone at home, where one should not be. Each place serves a purpose

other than what it was initially intended to be. Even if that second purpose is true to just one

person in the world, it is existent. All places have a deeper significance. The first appearance

deceives many; the intelligence of a few perceives [/sees] the whole panorama, or the big

picture.

Works Cited

Unknown. "A Quote by Phaedrus." Goodreads. Goodreads Inc, 2017. Web. 28 Mar. 2017.

U.S. News & World Report. "Panorama High: Student Body." High School Rankings. U.S. News

& World Report L.P., 2017. Web. 27 Mar. 2017.

Facilities News. "News Corner." News Corner. Facilities Services Division, LAUSD, 6 Nov.

2006. Web. 27 Mar. 2017.