What happens when people from different backgrounds grow up together?

For many Americans, public school is one of the first places they encounter people whose lives, beliefs, interests, and experiences are different from their own. It's where friendships form across social circles, where kids learn to navigate differences, and where they begin to understand that the world is bigger than themselves.

In this episode of Public School Kids, Erika Peterman talks with two Montana public school kids whose lives took very different paths: New York Times Hollywood Correspondent, Brooks Barnes, and conservationist, Ryan Callaghan. Together, their stories reveal how public schools create the shared spaces where young people learn confidence, curiosity, empathy, and how to live alongside people who aren't like them.

Historian Johan ...