MaryAmbrose

The back-to-school nerves that roll around every August are no joke, especially freshman year. Luckily, Marian has a solution to help make the transition to high school a little more manageable. Over the summer, Marian hosted events for the incoming freshmen to meet rising juniors, who will play the role of their big sister class.

In May, freshmen had the chance to attend an Ice Cream Social. Here they enjoyed ice cream and met some other freshmen. They also got paired up with juniors who answered any questions they had about Marian. In July, they completed a service event which gave them a glimpse of Marian’s dedication to community service.

For incoming freshman Caitlin Smith, the summer events made her feel “a lot more comfortable going into high school, and made it easier to make new friends.” She enjoyed the social aspect of the events, and now feels ready to begin her freshman year. For junior Ellie Smith, Caitlin’s older sister, the events were a great way for her “class to come together and be leaders for the incoming freshmen.”

Overall, these summer events impacted the incoming freshmen and juniors. The freshmen got the chance to experience their future school through fun bonding events, while the juniors got the opportunity to help out their little sisters and create a special bond between the two classes.

Another Big Sister sponsored event, the new family orientation happened on Monday, Aug. 8, kicked off with ice breaker games and Kona Ice, sponsored by the Yale family. While the parents had a meeting in the Performing Arts Center center about tips and tricks about being a parent of a new high schooler, incoming freshmen went to their new homerooms and played icebreaker games with classmates.

This event allowed freshmen to enjoy sweet treats and laughs as a way to ease their pre-high school nerves. Freshmen and Big Sisters were be back in the building for Freshman Orientation on Thursday, Aug. 18. The entire student body returns on Aug. 19.