Transfer Student Population Jumps
NEIRAD enilno edition
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At the start of each new school year, hundreds of new freshman faces fill our hallways as we all scatter to find our new classes after a long summer vacation. Many find themselves caught up in the commotion that veteran DHS students tend to look past: those lost expressions of new students. And no, these kids are not only freshman.
This year an unexpectedly high number of transfer students set foot in DHS in late August. The administration expected to have about 30 transfer students for the 2009-2010 school year. They received double that figure when 60 transfers enrolled.
Compared to the 1,253 students attending DHS last year, there are around 1,308 students. Though this number isn’t the exact amount it shows how the school population has jumped an additional 60 students.
One reason is the economic status. Because of the downfall of the economy many Darien residents are pulling their kids out of boarding and private schools to attend public school. Also, according to Assistant Superintendent for Secondary Schools, Dr Stephan Falcone, “Some of these higher numbers can be attributed to fewer students leaving DHS than expected. Certainly, we have had students enroll in DHS, but I would suggest that fewer have left as well,” Dr Falcone said.
Whether students are returning to Darien from private schools or they are choosing not to leave Darien, we also have been fortunate enough to welcome many new kids from places all around the globe.
Sophomores, Allison Chaix from France, Zoe Chun from Hong Kong, and junior Nina Pawelczyk from Germany have all chosen to leave the comforts of their homes to become part of the one-and-only Darien Blue Wave.
Chaix, who originally grew up in Maryland, moved last year to Aubenas, France. There Chaix attended the Immaculate Conception School with no previous education in French. Moving to Darien this year came as a huge relief to Chaix. When asked how Darien differed from Aubenas, Chaix said, “I don't know where to start. It's different in a lot of ways. Schools in Darien are much bigger and there are a lot more kids. In France school starts around 8am and you get out at 4:30pm or 5pm so the days are a lot longer! Also we don't have any frees or breaks during school. It is a lot stricter there,” Chaix said.
For many transfers, the transition to Darien High School has been a fun but challenging process. “Well, may I say, it’s a HUGE high school. It can be a good thing and a bad thing because it’s way too big to let me get used to the campus. It takes me a lot of time. The good thing is DHS has a really nice environment to study in high school,” Chun said.
Many transfer students can relate to Chun’s difficulty navigating the campus. They can find support by joining the Transfer Student Club. Juniors Joy Meikle, George Moore, Lauren Mazzoli, and Alex Minicucci, who are otherwise known as “The Core Four”, started the organization last fall.
“We all had Mrs. Taylor as our guidance counselor, and figured out we all had the same lunch two days in a cycle. We decided to get together in a conference room in guidance with Mrs. Taylor and chat, catch up, and get to know each other. It became a routine thing and we began to form what is now the transfer club!” Meikle said.
Club member and Darienite, junior Kendra Osborn noted this organization is making a big impact for kids new to DHS. “The transfer student club has created a core group for all of the transfer students to hang out. When coming into a new school it can be difficult making new friends, and I think the club has really helped prevent the transfers from feeling alone during their first few weeks at DHS. We want to make getting around the school, lunch, and overall settling in as easy as possible,” Osborn said.
Junior James Shanley, who returned to Darien from Fairfield Prep said, “The Transfer Student Club has helped me meet new people and also made me feel welcome in a community that I knew little about.”
The group meets every Friday in the guidance department during all lunches. Also, on Wednesdays, the group organizes a trip to the local Starbucks for everyone can catch up and get to know each other better. All the activities are open to all people old and new. As many would say, “The more the merrier”!
It is now our job as old Darienites to lend a helping hand to new students struggling to adjust to Darien and help show them all DHS has to offer. Meikle who endured the struggles of entering DHS last year said, “It's so important that when DHS students see a kid in the school they don't recognize or who they know has transferred that they go and talk to them, offer them a seat at lunch or help in some other way. I can tell you right now, it feels really nice for someone to do that.”
If you wish to become an active participant in the club, contact Lauren Mazzoli at lemazzoli@sbcglobal.net.
(for more on Nina, see page 4 of the Neirad Homecoming issue)
