With two months remaining in their first year of high school, freshmen have enjoyed the freedom of being high school students.
According to freshmen, the ability to select classes of their desire has been one of the best aspects of high school. Every student is unique in their interests and talents. While middle school provides the diversity of classes to help students discover their abilities, high school provides the opportunity for students to select classes that go into depth on specific subjects.
Freshman Mitchell Green has found that everyone has been taking classes according to their unique interest.
“[My favorite part of high school has been] that you can take more classes that you want to take, and you don’t have to go with ones that everyone else is going with,” said Green.
While some choose to explore the film classes or wood and metal shops, others select arts such as drawing, photography or music. Freshman Alex Ulleri chose to explore the art electives including drawing.
“I guess [my favorite part] is just that I can go to art classes if I choose to, which is a really big thing for me,” said Ulleri.
Middle school only includes two grade levels, limiting interaction with older as well as younger students. Including four grades, high school provides an older crowd that has a great influence on the freshmen. While the amount of people can be overwhelming for freshmen on the first day, by the end of the year freshmen have been introduced to upperclassmen that they can now call friends. Freshmen Jordan Blucher enjoyed being given the opportunity to interact with a large group of students.
“[The best part of high school is] meeting a whole other group of people,” said Blucher. “Because you’re with older people you feel more mature in a way.”
By using a program called Link Crew, Susquehannock has placed an emphasis on making the transition from middle school to high school as painless as possible. The purpose of Link Crew is to give freshmen interaction with at least four upperclassmen throughout the year. Link Crew leaders volunteer their time to help ease the worries of moving into high school. Link Crew coordinator Kristen Johnson has planned numerous development days that get freshmen out of their comfort zone and adjusted to a new school.
“Link Crew’s goal is to build a bridge between middle school and high school that the freshmen feel comfortable coming into a new building and getting acclimated to their classes and meeting new friends,” said Johnson.
By filling extended homeroom with games and lessons, Link Crew is able to make an impact on every freshmen. Freshman Sam Steines noticed Link Crew’s impact in the beginning of this year.
“It made me a lot more comfortable in the school,” said Steines. “They showed me around so that helped me.”
Other freshmen realized the influence of Link Crew as the year continued. Development days have proven to leave lasting impacts on freshmen. Whether it’s the game or the lesson that students remember, the freshmen leave having new information to help them succeed. Ulleri appreciates most the time that upperclassmen put into making the freshmen comfortable.
“[It has] helped alot. Its kind of nice to see the older kids coming and helping us,” said Ulleri. “Some of the games might be a little corny, but it’s kind of nice that they’re actually coming.”
Some of the Link Crew leadership becomes most prevalent towards the end of the year when the freshmen are looking forward to being sophomores. The knowledge that the upperclassmen have to share becomes even more apparent as their relationships with the freshmen develop.
“They give really good advice about what classes you should take and get out of the way,” said Blucher. “They also give good study habits and just tips in general.”
Through Link Crew and the wide range of classes, Susquehannock provides an environment in which freshmen feel comfortable discovering their unique traits. The high school proves to be a place for incoming freshmen to enjoy their first year by creating friendships and instilling confidence.
