Former freshman students are now experiencing the true reality of being a “high school” student. After a year of being sequestered at a school with just their grade level, they walked into a completely new environment filled with a multitude of changes.

In the process, there were many dramatic differences these new sophomores had to adjust to–the different buildings, more students, stricter rules, etc. According to some, the Freshman Division rules were more lenient. A lot of actions were overlooked while attending the former school, such as dress code, grades, tardies, absences–and the behavior in general. “Here we are treated more like adults,” says sophomore student Carlee Vanator. With that comes a lot more responsibility. “There is a lot more structure and order at Elkhart High.” These new sophomores have had a wake-up call and have had to make adjustments to the way they present themselves at school.

One of the main challenges is getting from building to building on time with only an 8-minute passing period to do so. As a result, there’s a lot less time to spend with friends and people because they rarely ever see them. The sophomores were used to being able to socialize, since all their classes were more centrally located. Here, at the West Campus, getting from building to building is time consuming. “Teachers knew how hard it was to get from building to building with so many people crowding you,” sophomore Esteban Garcia explains about the first few days of school. “It was extremely helpful when they are understanding about being a little late”

 It’s been a little difficult having to adjust to so many changes, but as of right now, most every sophomore has been getting the hang of how things operate at EHS. “Things are getting easier with the environment change and so many more students,” Vanator continues.

It looks like the class of 2025 is going to do just fine for their second year of high school.