"[I went to school at] Morenci High. [Before that it was at] Metcalf, the elementary school, that beautiful school in Metcalf. Beautiful white brick with a basement. If you talk about that school, people can hardly believe it, it was this beautiful and this was well equipped. They had a chemistry lab, a beautiful kitchen, a nice auditorium where we used to have our Christmas programs but by the time I got around, all of this was gone. I went there to that school from the first grade to the sixth and then they started taking us to Morenci. [They took us] by bus they drive us every day to Morenci. [It was a] lovely school [in Morenci.] We loved it. Very well equipped, very good.

[I have] lots of pleasant memories going to the Junior-Senior Prom, lots of wonderful memories. I remember Arizona at that time required [one] to know the constitution of Arizona and the U.S. Constitution in order to graduate. You had to know before giving you a diploma at that time. I remember my graduation from high school. We were rehearsing, marching up to the stage where we were going to be handed our diplomas, a big fanfare for that year, that town, Morenci. I remember the teacher, the English teacher, came to me, we were already in line marching up just rehearsing, and she said to me, “Emma, you need one book report.” “At this time?” “Yes, you need one book report. What book can you do? Can you tell me something about any book as we march along?” You know very well that by that time she already had my diploma signed off and everything. She was just tormenting me. Well anyway, I said to myself, “What can I tell this teacher?” I said, “Yes, I do. I can report to you orally about a book.” “What is it?” she said. “Romeo and Juliet,” I said to her. You know how I know Romeo and Juliet really well? My mother had told me that story in Spanish! She had told me the whole story of Romeo y Julieta. I said to her, “I’ll tell you the story.” In my mind I knew it in Spanish but I translated it into English. Isn’t that a story? (Laughs) But it’s true! She (my mother) was a reader. She liked to read. So I told her the whole story I translated in my mind. (Laughs) Beautiful to be bilingual. Beautiful! I think.

I stayed home for a while [after graduation] helping with my younger brothers and sisters. Then when I knew they could take care of themselves without me, my father was there of course, I went to the University of New Mexico in 1941. I majored in Spanish, a schoolteacher, education.

[The courses I took in high school were] the requirements of Arizona, four years of English, two years of science, which I took chemistry and biology, two years of foreign language, which of course I took Spanish. But all of us did that, to make straight A’s! (Laughs) U.S. history was required also. I took home ec as an elective. Physical education I think was also an elective.

[The schools were not segregated] we were all together in classes and we all were very friendly, one class to another. I don’t have any feeling that they [the teachers treated anyone differently].
They [my parents] expected me to do good, well [in school]. They [my brothers and sister] would have gone [to college] if they had been able to go.

I had scholarships [to go to college] from the Presbyterian Church. I lived in the Presbyterian school in Albuquerque that the church provided for us. So everything that I did as far as education is concerned, I owe it to the Presbyterian Church. I had several people from the church that wanted me very badly to go to college.

That church that we had there were just Mexicanos. In Metcalf it was all Mexicanos. When we lived in Morenci there was a Spanish-speaking church and an English-speaking church. We went to the one speaking in Spanish of course. Do you remember the Longfellow Inn? Near the Longfellow Inn there was a little building there that they sold cars. It was a brick building, very sturdy, very good and it was sold and the church bought it and made a little chapel out of it. Right below [the Catholic Church]. Just below the Holy Cross in Morenci."