By Henna Khan
Business Manager
On Tues., Wed. and Thurs. the Coppell High School Red Jackets along with several Ready, Set, Teach! members will be giving helpful advice and one very well-rounded tour of the campus to 8th graders throughout Coppell.
As a Red Jacket myself, I had the opportunity to witness the reactions, the experience and the questions first hand.
The day started off with a warm welcome as the students were ushered into the auditorium for a brief introduction as well as an overview video made by KCBY. The kids were then broken down into 14 different groups, where they would be paired with one Red Jacket and one Ready, Set, Teach! member.
Groups 1-7 then headed to the lecture hall to receive some vital information about the registration process, while groups 8-14 went on their tour.
One thing is certain, judging by the looks on those kids faces, they were more than simply overwhelmed. Some of them didn’t know where to look, some of them didn’t want to look and several of them walked in silence.
The most interesting part of the day, however, came during the question and answer session that took place in the lecture hall at the conclusion of the tour. At this time, the students were given a chance to ask any questions or raise any potential concerns. To help aid this session was a group of 6 seniors coming from all different backgrounds and 2 Red Jackets that helped monitor the panel.
Having been a monitor for my panel, I got to hear a drum major, football player, tennis player, IB student and Spanish Club President talk about their experiences at CHS over the last four years. Upon the conclusion of the panel, Mr. Hunt asked each senior to give one bit of advice to the eighth grades seated in front of them.
While most of what was said was along the lines of helpful time management advice, it was senior Emily Hyslop’s two cents that got me to choke up just a little.
She simply advised the students to make their time worth while at CHS and embrace every moment of it. She mentioned that she herself didn’t understand where time had gone and before she knew it she would be graduating in four months and off to Bellmont University on her own in the fall.
As she spoke, I couldn’t help but relate to what she was saying.
It’s true, before long now, we’ll be in the same position these eighth graders are in and perhaps then it will allow me to step into their shoes and experience the nervousness yet again.
