Meeting the principal for the first time, getting lost on the first day, meeting someone you like. It’s all part of the high school experience. When it comes to the Class of 2007, they seem to be settling nicely into their new environment.
Dana Hill, who plays the cymbals in the marching band, said her best high school experience so far was the Homecoming pep rally, where she performed with the band in the gymnasium in front of the entire school. The former Levey middle schooler said she enjoyed seeing the other performers, too: “During the pep rally it was fun watching the step shows.”
Freshman Bernard Banks says he is becoming more mature this year because he is surrounded by high schoolers.
But the whole transition from high school to middle school has not been smooth sailing. Antonio Ngo says that the academic level is harder for him because the work is more challenging.
Adjusting to the high school way of lunch has been a challenge, too, Ngo says. He and others say lunch in high school has turned out to be less exciting than anticipated. Apparently the adolescent fantasy of eating pizza every day has now become a harsh reality. Believe it or not, Ngo says he’s actually tired of it.
“High school is a whole different atmosphere,” says Brittany Grace, who says her experience so far has been largely positive.
“We have a lot more freedom with more responsibility,” says Grace. Many of these freedoms include after school activities, parties, and, of course, dating.
Dating, in fact, seems to be a big part of high school. A large majority of freshmen say that high-school relationships are more serious. The people are more mature.
There are 563 freshmen enrolled at SHS. The majority come from Levey and Thompson middle schools; a few come from Birney Middle School, says Attendance Secretary Cherry Marshall.
All in all, high school seems to be a positive change for this year’s freshmen. With new experiences in a new place, the freshmen seem to be on their way.
James Andersen and Rachel Wiedemann are students in the Writing for Print class that trains students for staff positions on The Southfield Jay.
