For many incoming freshmen, high school can be a daunting experience. We’ve all heard the rumors about high school and how overwhelming it can be to those unprepared for it. And those rumors are understandable. High school is an entirely new environment filled with new people and challenges. It’s a massive step up from middle school and sometimes, it can be a little bit difficult to get comfortable with the increased workflow and responsibilities.
To help alleviate any nervousness or pressure that freshmen may feel, Link Crew, a group of upperclassmen leaders advised by Ms. Acosta, Mrs. Smith, Mr. Caire, and Mrs. Rushing, hold a Freshman Orientation to help incoming students acclimate and immerse themselves in the San Marino High School community. “Our Link Crew leaders did an excellent job in facilitating our community building activities, providing a school tour, helping students get their textbooks, and student IDs. Another highlight was that all students that participated in orientation were provided Tony’s Pizza, which is a community staple,” Ms. Acosta said. “Our leaders have one of the most important jobs on campus. They are the first connection that our freshmen students and new students create. Link Crew leaders create community connections and help our students feel safe and connected to our campus. Additionally, student leaders guide the freshmen to discover what it takes to be successful during the transition to high school. They promote campus events and stay in communication with their freshmen crew throughout the year.”
Normally, Freshman Orientation takes place right before the first day of high school and this year was no exception. After being warmly welcomed by the counseling staff as well as their respective Link Crew leaders, the freshmen then broke into several groups of 10 and then completed a multitude of activities that helped foster close bonds and create a sense of warmth and familiarity. These activities included Count Off, Team Juggling, Lifestory, and a version of Jenga. All of these were interactive and required active participation from the freshmen. “I thought the Jenga was pretty fun mainly because of how small the Jenga blocks were so they kept on falling over which was really funny. It was also pretty interesting listening to everybody answer the questions but some of the questions were pretty weird,” Ryan Yarruso, 9, said.
After each group finished their activities, they embarked on a campus tour where leaders guided their freshmen groups to a multitude of key locations across campus. Afterwards, the freshmen were treated to lunch and finished the day off by taking their ID photos, picking up their new books, and exploring potential clubs during Club Recruitment.
Many Link Crew leaders also found the experience to be very rewarding. “Link Crew gave me a unique opportunity to not only help newcomers feel accustomed to the high school dynamic, but also meet and create bonds with amazing people. While there were some struggles and hiccups throughout the whole event, I think we all had a lot of fun goofing around and hanging out with each other,” Surdish Rhandawa, 11, said.
