Hailie Vasquez and Brooke Castaldo
As the blazing hot summer quickly transitions into a crisp and exciting autumn, the class of 2026 is also going through just as big a change: Starting high school. This highly anticipated part of our academic lives has filled our heads and been the most popular topic of conversation for as long as we can remember. But now that the time is finally here, how does the freshman class of Nyack High School really feel?
To figure out the answer to our question, we went straight to the source: The freshman class. We asked, “What’s one part about high school that surprised you?” Many students agreed that the high school promotes a more creative and independent environment. Enriketta Martignoni said, “Nobody cares what you wear.” Lena Frappier added, “I enjoy more freedom in school.”
But freedom isn’t the only thing that’s different for these upcoming freshmen. With freedom comes responsibility. Teachers aren’t hounding their students to stay on top of their work or to go to extra help anymore. Everything that these students do now affects their plans for post graduation and beyond. Whether it's college or trade school, everything counts now. So how does the freshmen class deal with this information?
We went from hallway to hallway, class to class, asking freshmen students this question. Lily Sapounas told us how she has changed the way she performs in school. She says, “I work harder, I take more notes and pay more attention in class.” Martigoni said, “I take certain extracurriculars and classes solely because of college. Even if I don’t like the class, I would still take it if it gives me a lot of credits.” The thought of getting into college has changed everything for these students. For most of them, the very concept of school is much more serious now and they won’t let anything get in their way of success.
A lot of the time, all we think about is how important these four years of our life will be. We think that the most important thing about high school is how well we do in our classes. But entering this new and exciting institution has also shown us just how different middle school and high school are from a social standpoint. “From middle school to high school, it’s definitely different,” said Janina Acosta . “You have classes with people from all different grades which can be so overwhelming, but it also allows you to hang out with new people, which means you can lose friends.”
A primary difference is that in high school, all of the grades are mixed. Freshmen are used to exclusively having classes with their own grade, so the concept of being on the same academic level as some of the upperclassmen has made a big change in our lives. Ava Bach said, “It’s weird seeing kids from other grades in my classes and during lunch.”
The things that may be normal for upperclassmen seem obscure to the freshman. These new things may scare some students, but they also help us to grow. “Being in classes and on the same level as students older than me almost motivates me to impress them,” said Mayeli Parada.
When we think about the transition from middle school to high school, we often think about academic transformations. But the social wellbeing of the students is just as important. When we asked the freshman about how their friendships have changed while transitioning to a new school, they had a lot to say. Quinn Dabney said, “My friendships definitely changed when I got to high school. In your electives, there’s a lot of mixed grades so you get to meet a lot of new people and spread your wings a little bit.”
Meeting new people in the building is certainly a positive thing, but moving between buildings can also lead to friendships shifting apart. “I feel like people have matured more because of the new responsibilities and harder classes that we have now in high school,” said Parada. “If that means that they want to move on and focus on other things more, then so be it.”
Coming into a new school is difficult for everyone. Some things come as a shock, but otherwise, this class has been looking forward to this next chapter of their lives for a very long time. There are many more changes our freshmen class will experience throughout the next semester, but each student should know that they have a support system behind them. We know these new adjustments can be rough, but Nyack High School has got everybody's back.