Ninth grade transition offers innovative ideas

Beginning fall of 2017, more than 700 freshmen within the district will attend the high school for the first time. It is a big change from what everyone is used to, and adjustments will need to be made between now and then. In order to ensure that all the freshmen feel settled and comfortable at the new and improved school, their orientation process will need to be different than what sophomores have experienced in the past years.

In the past, the sophomores were the first grade to make the move from junior high to high school. That transition has been smooth due to the older age of the students. Orientation would span only a few hours on a certain day, and time would be spent learning the school song, basic guidelines, and walking through their schedules.

With the freshmen, a more involved approach will be necessary. This approach is called Link Crew. Ten freshmen will be placed with two upperclassmen, and will have the opportunity to connect with one another during the year through academic and social events. These groups will be made in the summer, and meet at the orientation preceding the school year before getting started.

As the youngest, it is crucial for the freshmen to feel welcomed by peers. That is why Link Crew is  lead by upperclassmen, who will mentor and show the younger students all the good things high school has to offer.

Link Crew’s success is owed mostly to students themselves, and Assistant Principal Matt Kraft said, “It is the the single most influential program to positively impact school culture. Link Crew is about highlighting our best resource in school; our student leaders.”

Link Crew is a program that has been in effect for 19 years. It has trained in 1,893 different schools and has impacted 1 million students in North America; these students being all incoming freshman, 20 percent of a school’s juniors and seniors and 35 percent of a school’s overall population.

There is more to the integration than just the orientation, Jennifer Pelletier, member of the transition team said, “One approach we are currently considering in the academics area has to do with creating teams of teachers who work with the same students.  The benefit to this approach is that teachers will get to know their students much better,”  With teams like this, students will feel very supported and will have the ability to create relationships with teachers and staff.

With the addition of another grade, upperclassmen will be expected to fulfill expectations of what it means to be a Pony and serve as role models for the younger students. Leadership roles will be available to those willing to give their time to helping settle the lower-classmen into high school.

It’s not all about the freshmen, though. Kraft explained, “We are bringing the ninth graders up AND we are looking at improving the experience of 10-12th graders through creative options.”

Without removing attention from the integrations, administrators and the transition team are looking at ways to make sure the sophomores, juniors, and seniors also have the most enriching high school experience possible.

With over 3,000 students attending the high school next fall, things might seem overwhelming, but staff and students will do their best to ensure that every student and peer feels comfortable and Pelletier said, the ultimate goal is trying “to lessen that anxiety, providing our 9th graders with a sense of belonging.”