Back to school: For freshmen at MHS, a whole new world
By Cindy VotrubaArticle Photos
New Marshall High School freshman Tom DeBaere said he was a little apprehensive about starting high school Tuesday.
Especially in a big building like the Marshall High School.
"I'm kind of nervous, I'm worried about getting lost," DeBaere said at Thursday's Marshall High School freshman orientation.
Like DeBaere, going from eighth grade to being a freshman at Marshall High School in a class of more than 200 students can be confusing, nerve-wracking, yet exciting at the same time.
Marshall High School has several opportunities for incoming freshmen and transfer students to feel more at home and lose those nerves during their first year.
One of those opportunities is a new program at the high school this year - the ninth-grade academy. MHS Principal Brian Jones and MHS guidance counselor Shirley Greenfield said the program was designed to ease the transition from middle school to high school and to help the students succeed.
"We did have some students who really struggled making the transition," Greenfield said.
The academy is a "school within a school" concept, Greenfield said, with smaller class sizes. The teachers are specially trained and will teach the core classes - science, English and math - in a team environment.
"The kids will have greater support than in the past," Greenfield said.
Jones said the high school is excited to kick off the new program.
"I think this will have a positive effect on the students," Jones said about the ninth-grade academy.
Greenfield said attending orientation is also a good idea for incoming freshmen. Students get to find where their classes and lockers are, meet their teachers and receive their schedules.
"The kids who go there, they feel so much better," Greenfield said.
Greenfield said those freshmen who don't attend orientation will
"They hit the front doors on the first day of school, and they don't know where everything is," Greenfield said.
Many freshmen and their parents took advantage of orientation on Thursday. New freshman Matt Hanson is coming to the high school from Marshall Area Christian School. There were only two in his eighth-grade class, but Hanson said he's OK with the bigger school environment.
"I've been to the public school before, so I'm used to it," Hanson said.
But, Hanson said, he's never seen this many students in one school before.
Daniel Pals of Milroy is coming to the high school from a class of eight students.
"It's definitely different, it's quite (big)," Pals said. He said he won't have too much trouble with finding his classes though because the school is mapped out well.
Colleen Donner and Taylor Doyle are transitioning to the high school from Holy Redeemer School.
"It's different, it's bigger," Donner said.
"There's a little more students," Doyle said.
Amanda Piehl said she's ready to start high school.
"I'm so excited," Piehl said.
Piehl and fellow freshman Macy Durheim searched for their classrooms together on Thursday. They did make a couple of wrong turns.
"This is fun going in circles," Piehl said.
The Marshall High School Ambassadors were at orientation Thursday to keep the new freshmen from not going in circles and leading them in the right direction. Greenfield said the upperclassmen who are in Ambassadors take the freshmen under their wing. Freshmen can rely on the Ambassadors if they have a problem with transition or just get together and hang out.
"I think the Ambassadors are wonderful, I'm glad we have them," Greenfield said.
