Art
This photograph captures students at Central High School during the 1920s, a time when American public education was expanding rapidly. For most families, high school represented a new opportunity—a chance for their children to gain skills beyond what factory or farm work required.
Art · Full story
You walk into a crowded hallway filled with young faces, some serious, some caught mid-conversation. The boys wear dark suits and ties; the girls stand in long skirts and careful posture. Everyone seems acutely aware they're being photographed—this is a formal occasion, a record of achievement.
Reflect
What did your own high school experience feel like? How much has changed—or stayed the same?