How big would you consider a smaller class? I went to one of the Top 50 public schools in the nation and we had classes that were 35-37 students in highschool.

I had the same experience as /u/doscomputer. A really nice highschool. Everyone was super open and inviting. Teens will be shitty little teens but we had a thriving GSA club. No one was afraid to come out, everyone protected our handicap kids, outright bullying was minimal.

I knew that I had it lucky growing up. I was one of the first mixed race kids in my growing little city (Chinese/Hspanic). I very rarely encountered any negativity. Most people were intrigued by my racial mix. My parents had different stories to tell of racism but they seemed to be happy that I was growing up in a very nice environment.

The class size, less important, I think. I can't speak for malicious staff. The funding, definitely important. Our music program was just as big, if not bigger, than the theater and sports and we did really well in those areas too. The wealthy parents often donated either money or equipment, or their time to make lunches/meals/clean/etc. Funding comes from all avenues but it flows more freely it seems in a wealthy liberal-ish area. There's a lot of indirect funding like tutoring. Bunch of kids getting instrumental or sports lessons after school tends to mean the school becomes more competitive because the music theory/soccer practice of the student is more reinforced. If they can win at small competitions because of the kids, they can win at larger ones, and therefore draw more funding.