Helping freshmen find their way

Mentors guide newest students

Abby Connolly was a port in a storm for Marysa Rogozynski on Wednesday.

Rogozynski was one of 356 freshmen attending their first day at Glacier High School. Despite having come from Kalispell Middle School, which has close to 1,000 students, Rogozynski was still a little overwhelmed by her new school's unfamiliar classrooms, hallways and sheer size.

"It's a little nerve-wracking at first," she said.

But Rogozynski had Connolly, a senior, to show her around the first day of school.

Connolly and about 90 other upperclassmen are part of Glacier High School's peer mentor program, in which junior and senior mentors take freshmen under their wings.

Their task is simple: Help freshmen find their way.

Mentors may offer advice about classes and teachers. They can provide ninth-graders a listening ear or a shoulder to cry on. Throughout their first year of high school, freshmen can turn to their mentors whenever they feel a little lost.

On the first day of school, the "lost" feeling was often literal.

"It definitely would be a lot harder than it is right now" without a peer mentor, Rogozynski said. "I probably would get really confused and lost. I'm glad I have a mentor."

Most of Glacier High's freshmen toured the school last week during the school's open house. They have received maps and have scouted their classrooms. But to better help freshmen get the lay of the land, their peer mentors helped them on a scavenger hunt around the school on Wednesday.

A mantra about measuring twice and cutting once led students to wood shop. The clue about being "gneiss' (and a hint from their mentors' took them to a physical science classroom. In a little over half an hour, freshmen explored their new school from end to end and were noticeably more comfortable in their new surroundings than they had been just hours before.

"After you get past the whole it's-a-big-place-and-it's-new kind of thing, it's cool," Rogozynski said.

Helping freshmen reach that point is the peer mentor program's purpose. That's why Connolly has volunteered as a mentor for the last two years.

"It's just to give back to the freshmen and to help them be more successful," she said. "Because if the freshmen are successful, the whole school's successful."

Connolly and other upcoming juniors and seniors interested in becoming mentors applied last spring. The applications included a place to list hobbies so freshmen could be matched with older students who shared their interests.

Each mentor was assigned three or four ninth-graders. Becca Eisenman, a senior, is watching out for four freshmen.

Throughout the year, she will check in with her ninth-graders to make sure they are doing more than simply surviving high school. She'll help them find their way around the school and answer any questions they might have. She'll also try to get to know them and interact with them outside the school.

The goal, she said, is to dispel the stereotypical disdain for freshmen other high schools experience.

"That's kind of why we did it, to be welcoming, so it's not just freshman initiation," Eisenman said. "We're not a regular high school. We actually like freshmen."

It's very different from Eisenman's experience. She was a ninth-grader at Kalispell Junior High School before the district had two high schools.

"You didn't associate with any [upperclassmen] or get to know them unless you were in activities," she said. "Here they get to know the upperclassmen. It's not as scary for freshmen."

Freshmen heard from upperclassmen during the morning's welcome assembly. Senior Wiley Fusaro urged ninth-graders to take advantage of the school's staff as well as their peer mentors whenever they need help.

"This is Glacier High School. All the staff and everyone are here for you," he said.

Fusaro, whose father, Peter, is the principal of Flathead High School, also told the ninth-grade class to take each day of high school as it comes.

"Homecoming, prom - those are the days you live for," he said. "The days you get sent to the principal's office, not so much. Those are the days you get through."

The first day of school seemed closer to a day to live for than a day to get through for many freshmen. Dillon Moes, a recent graduate of St. Matthew's School, said he was excited about the new school year, even if Glacier's size was a little staggering after cozy St. Matt's.

"It's pretty overwhelming," he said. But "I expect this is going to be really fun."

Reporter Kristi Albertson may be reached at 758-4438 or by e-mail at kalbertson@dailyinterlake.com