I Am A Promise: The Children of Stanton Elementary School

Rating: 8
Genre: Documentary

This documentary was shot in Philadelphia in 1992 at an inner city grade school. It follows moments in the lives of various students, teachers, and the principal.

The crux of the movie is the clashing struggle between potential and the existing socio-economic conditions. The principal points out the inequality she faces daily; the fact that her school is allocated $4,000 per child while suburban schools are allocated up to $16,000 per child, etc. She was an extremely caring lady who went way above and beyond just to give these kids as fair of a chance at life as she possibly could.

Some of the kids in the movie were so stinkin’ cute that you just wanted to hug them, feed them, and take them to the safety of your own home. Most of the students’ parents were single moms and many of the parents are either ex-convicts, drug addicts, or both. One girls parents were so messed up that she just started going home to a different place; the man who’s house she went to (she calls him grandpa) said she was like a hide-e-cat who just showed up at his doorstep and when we opened the door she came in and didn’t leave. This kind-hearted man took her in and raised her and kept her safe from the danger she faced from her parents crack-head lifestyle.

One of the teachers was an amazing role models for boys who had no other male role models. He taught them about overcoming racial barriers, not getting into drugs and alcohol, and how to respect themselves and others.

The movie, which won an oscar in 1994, was crushingly depressing at times… but was also charming and hope-filled. As the children’s choir sings this song at the end of the movie you can't help believe the words will come to fruition:

I am a promise
I am a possibility
I am a promise with a capital "P"
I am a great big bundle of potentiality
And I am learnin' to hear God's voice
And I am tryin' to make the right choice
I am a promise to be anything God wants me to be.

I can go anywhere that He wants me to go
I can be anything He wants me to be
I can climb the high mountains
I can cross the wide sea
I'm a great big promise you see!

Sadly, in our distracting world, much of the potentiality will be unrealized. Even the genuinly loving principal quit – she was so invested that she burned out due to the lack of internal (help from parents) and external (financial basics) support. I would’ve loved to see a ‘where are they now’ segment to find out how much these students were impacted by the people who tried so hard to build a solid foundation for them to stand upon.