This year, we welcome to College Park the class of 2028. The new class of freshmen are finding their way around the school and getting used to the plethora of changes from junior high school to high school.

“The first week, they gave us everything we needed,” Robin Agurirre-Casas said. “They gave us the tools and they just said go forth and do what you need, just don’t start drowning in school work.”

College Park is a very large school, with around 365,000-square-feet, three floors, and more hallways than you can keep track of. With a campus this size, navigating the school for the first time can be difficult. 

“The school is massive,” Agurirre-Casas said. “I’ve noticed that much. I understand why they give us so much time for passing periods.”

The size of the school isn’t the only difference though. The workload in high school is significantly greater than before.

“You’re expected to do more stuff on your own and learn on your own,” Agurirre-Casas said. “A lot more homework, I’ve noticed that much, or just work you have to do outside of school. It’s a rough road but I’m definitely adapting.”

And freshmen are needing to adjust not only to the different size of the workload, but also to the different methods and expectations high school teachers may have.

  “The teachers here are more, like, more strict than in junior high,” Ashely Ribero said. “At first I felt overwhelmed because I was just focusing on my grades. I thought I had to do the best, but I’m trying to calm down and not actually push myself too hard.”

But not all of the differences from junior high school to high school are for the worse. While College Park has its share of substance-based issues, some freshmen think it’s a step up from their junior-high schools.

“Oh, it was worse there,” Zach Curry said. “ They sold [drugs] everywhere. There were canines every day. It really was worse.”

Yet, even with all the challenges freshmen are facing, this new class seems ready to make College Park into something even better than what it is!