Exploring a new school can be difficult, and there’s plenty of pressure and anxiety that comes with it. Here at Enochs there’s a way for new students to feel more at ease with this transition. 

Like the beginning of every other year, incoming freshmen attended SOAR (or freshmen orientation) for the 2022-2023 school year. They were accompanied by trained upperclassmen called Link Crew Leaders. They are designed to help navigate the freshman through the new environment at Enochs. 

“We really want to make sure [freshmen are] comfortable coming here on the first day of school-” Ms. Mariano, the leadership teacher and administrator who oversees SOAR stated. “-that they walked around, they’ve seen the buildings and also that they know faces of upperclassmen that could help them along the way.”

Now that school is in session and freshmen have gotten used to the environment, many have expressed that their Link Crew Leaders did a wonderful job giving advice and thoroughly showing the campus.

“My link crew leader was very helpful in telling us where our classes would be,” Claire DeMattos stated. “…he was like ‘N building you’ll have most of these types of classes and you’ll have these types of classes in this building’.”

This also meant that most freshmen felt prepared on the first day of school. They were able to easily find their classes, understood what they needed to do, and where to go if they needed help finding anything. Reese Johnson stated that they helped her understand where the tech room and library are which she felt was important to know in order to have a good first day.

Jacob Chavez even received help during the first three days of school. One of his link crew leaders is in the leadership class, just like him. So, he felt that he received help to the fullest, feeling the utmost confidence during the first week of school.

It seems pretty clear that the Link Crew covered most, if not all, their bases during orientation. Even extending help during school. Having upperclassmen show the freshmen around seems to be the best way to manage this drastic change. These students have gone through what the freshmen are and, therefore, able to give the best advice.

Now there’s definitely a chance that some freshmen felt they didn’t receive the help they would’ve liked to have or they still have questions. Ms. Mariano recommends talking to an adult, a link crew leader, or an upperclassmen on campus. They will be more than willing to help a student in need. 

Overall, it’s very common for freshmen to struggle with adjusting to new surroundings. So as the year goes on, let’s expect Link Crew to continue to provide a smooth pathway for the new generation.