Transitioning from 8th to 9th grade can be very difficult for students, especially if they’re starting high school at HMSA. Students here at HMSA know how stressful it can get during the first few weeks in school. They are expected to be able to adapt to the rigorous curriculum quickly, while also remembering the names of the three buildings on campus, the location of their classes, and getting used to waking up half an hour earlier.

Most freshmen usually get support and help from their older siblings that are alumni or currently attending HMSA, but there is a large number of freshmen who are completely unfamiliar with HMSA. To help ease the transition for freshmen HMSA has decided to start a new club for incoming students. Link Crew is recruiting sophomores and juniors who are interested in helping the incoming freshmen adapt to the customs of being an HMSA student.

Upperclassmen will be able to talk with a couple of incoming freshmen about their previous personal experiences as freshmen. They will be able to offer any tips or tactics that helped them succeed freshmen year and the years after that. The helpers can also talk about any mistakes they made during their time at HMSA; they can discuss ways of avoiding these mistakes in the future and what to do if a mistake happens to occur. Link leaders will also meet up with the new freshmen during Summer Bridge to guide them through the four days of orientation. The freshmen will feel more confident about starting the 9th grade and about their ability to succeed in high school. One of the goals is to encourage the incoming freshmen to look forward to coming to HMSA to try their best in everything they do.

The meetings for interested 10th and 11th graders were held in Ms. Siegler’s room during lunch on May 10 and 12. Students who attended either one of the meetings received an application to be a part of Link Crew this upcoming school year. The applications were due to Ms. Siegler no later than May 17 at 3:30 pm. 

If you would like to be a Link Crew leader and help out the incoming freshmen, make sure you don’t forget to turn in your application form and watch out for any further information from Ms. Siegler.