Do you remember being a high school freshman?
Do you remember being scared and feeling lost in a new high school?
That is were Los Al Link Crew comes in.
Los Alamitos High School officials want members of the freshmen class to get involved in school activities, even if the shy freshmen would rather stare at their feet instead of dance with their classmates.
The Link Crew consists of around 90 members, juniors and seniors. Their mission is quite simple: show the freshman what they need to know to succeed in high school and help the freshman branch out.
This year it was a little more difficult to get involved in the club. The teachers in charge of Link Crew were swamped with applications to join.
Freshman arrived at Los Alamitos High School on Thursday, Aug. 19 and Friday, Aug. 20, timid and frightened for their high school journey.
The Link Crew members greeted the class of 2014 with smiles. Excited and energized, the link crewmembers danced in the parking lot where the ninth-graders were arriving.
They made “spirit” tunnels for the freshmen class to go through when they were going in the high school gym.
The crewmembers were assigned to around six to 12 freshman students whom they would be taking care of for a few hours. The crewmembers had the students do some fun games to break the ice and to help the ninth-graders get to know each other better. The underclassmen also participated in a few traditional dances such as gigolo and ride that pony.
“The freshman seemed like they were really into it and had fun,” said Luke Collins, a Link Crew leader.
Collins’ was one of many groups at the Link Crew orientation who dressed up his freshman students. He and his Link Crew partner, Alicia Jewell, dressed their freshman as the solar system.
The Link Crew team that won best costume was a group who had dressed the students up as eggs and the link leaders the chickens. They went on to win free prom tickets to the 2011 prom.
Jason Farvour and Jennifer Stewart are the Link Crew advisors this year. The advisors make sure all goes smoothly within the large group of Link Crew members. The advisors also plan all the activities for the freshmen.
The new students went through a tour of the school and saw all the important things that all Los Alamitos High School freshman should know. With their costumes intact, the freshman end the Link Crew activities in the gym, where Farvour treated them to some words of wisdom.
Freshman year can be a scary time for many, but maybe the Link Crew leaders at Los Alamitos High School helped make the first few days of high school a little less scary.
