On Aug. 31, incoming freshmen were given a sample of what the Terrace experience is like at orientation. Two sets of bleachers were almost completely filled by the over 420 students in the class of 2026 – easily the largest class this coming school year.
The mini-assembly that began at about 9:15 a.m. was led by ASB adviser and activities coordinator, Jeannie Brzovic. She started this by introducing the class of 2026 advisers, attendance secretary Kelsey Eyer and learning support teacher Jonathan Schaeffer.
As per tradition, the cheerleading team instructed freshmen on the well-known cheers, “Supersonic” and “Ice Cream and Cake,” to raise their excitement. The practice has become an informal rite of passage for incoming students. Despite a few difficulties with the music, the cheer team made their adjustments to make sure freshmen got to learn what they’ll see at assemblies. Connect Crew leaders helped demonstrate as well.
Expectedly, freshmen were hesitant to follow along with the tried-and-true ritual. Brzovic noted afterwards the freshmen will have to ‘bring it on’ for the all-school assembly so they’re prepared for the enthusiasm the upperclassmen will have.
Although the release of the class schedule was pushed back for the rest of the students at MTHS, freshmen were given theirs so they could know their PASS teachers. Because of this, Connect Crew captains and seniors Luna Tewolde and Kayla Apostol, as well as all Connect Crew members, separated freshmen by their PASS teachers. Crew leaders then took small groups around the school for a tour as well as showing them their classrooms and introducing students to their teachers.
One of the activities that incoming Terrace students were most interested in was the STEM program, with many stating they selected the aerospace and biotech pathways. So much so that students from outside of the region, like Cameron Buxton from Alderwood Middle, jumped through hoops to be able to attend MTHS. Robotics class was also fairly popular among the incoming class. Along with many students, there are plenty of new and returning staff members. Similar to other schools in the district, MTHS has quite the variety of students and staff. The school community consists of those originally from other states like Texas and California, and even other countries like Canada, Norway, Micronesia, Japan and the borders of India.
Following orientation, all MTHS students were assigned lockers and given the opportunity to walk around the HUB and view clubs they could join. There, various displays showcased the numerous clubs at Terrace including Eco Club, HSM, GSA, LSU, Drama Club and more. One of the clubs that previous Brier Terrace student Sebastian Bailon was interested in was Rocketry Club.
Freshman and previous Madrona K-8 student, Abby Werede is looking forward to being involved in the art program as well as swimming for Terrace. The fall sports season has already begun, including women’s soccer, men’s tennis, volleyball, football, women’s swim, and cross country, with the season ending in November. Both from Brier Terrace M. S., Owen Smith is on the men’s varsity tennis team, and Christian Moore on the varsity football team.
Students of all grades were also given the opportunity to choose which hallway they wanted their locker in. Given this was the first time students had used lockers in two-and-a-half years, several had issues. Luckily, our custodians and many other Terrace students did what they could to help everyone get their lockers open. After a few slip-ups, everyone managed to open their locks with minimal effort.
In line with the past few years, a general feeling of uncertainty could be felt in the air. The 2022-2023 school year will be, arguably, the first whole year without social distancing and masks being mandatory. Not to mention the middle school years and experiences that the class of 2026 missed out on.
Madrona K-8 alumni Christian Samuel said he’s “interested to see how this will go,” in a quite optimistic tone for a subtly ominous message. Many students are excited to join clubs and make friends this year, and Brzovic noted during the assembly how high school would be an opportunity for students to reinvent themselves. In spite of that, others are anxious about the experience, such as Moore, who expressed he’s “hoping for the best, expecting the worst.”
In spite of all of the nerves freshmen are dealing with, plenty of them, like former Brier Terrace student Alysiah Soulisack, are excited to meet new people and join clubs instead of just being worried. Perhaps the best advice came from freshman Jason Perkins, from Meadowdale M. S. who said, “I try not to worry because I know everyone else is worried.”
