Carrie Graves describes her experience growing up in Cherry, a predominantly African American neighborhood in Charlotte, North Carolina, and her education at the segregated Morgan Elementary School and Second Ward High School during the 1940s through 1960s, with emphasis on parent-teacher relationships both inside and outside the classroom. Other topics discussed include Ms. Graves's views on the lack of social equality in American society, transportation challenges her children faced during school desegregation, and her views on how contemporary public education might be improved.