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The leap from middle school student to freshman at the Kingston High School campus can be overwhelming and intimidating for some. In order to ease the transition, more than 70 incoming freshman attended the District’s fifth annual three-day Summer Bridge program. Coordinated by KHS guidance counselors Lindsay Hartman and Errin Parese, the students were selected by Middle School administrators based on academic and social need.
The KHS Bridge Program is the first step in creating a strong relationship between the school community and new students.
Over the course of the recent program, students were engaged in numerous academic, social, and team building activities with 20 KHS faculty and staff members.
A simulated instructional class day rotation, where classroom teachers presented an interactive lesson and students moved throughout the six different KHS campus buildings, aided in students orienting themselves to a new learning environment.
Informational sessions on KHS clubs and activities, a tour of the campus, and meetings with members of the High School administration allowed students an inside look to the next four years of their lives.
The students also participated in New York State’s largest high and low ropes course at the Camp Deer Run facility in Pine Bush, where they had a fun time exercising, building self-esteem, promoting team work, and learning how to problem solve. During the entire program, upperclassmen who are proven role models and peer leaders at KHS, volunteered their time to help the group of freshmen take on these new challenges.
“The Bridge program ensures that a student’s initial experience at the High School is a positive one,” notes Miss Hartman of the program, which has had steadily increasing attendance over the last five years. Statistics show that social appropriateness, especially for a freshman, has a great impact on a student’s academic success. “The incoming freshmen look to the upperclassmen that attend the program as mentors, and for assistance in maneuvering through the hallways,” says Miss Hartman, adding that it is often easier for students to ask peers for information, rather than teachers.
“This program has proven to be a great aid to those students, who for many reasons, don’t have success with academics or the school environment,” says Miss Hartman. The activities of the program promote student awareness and responsible decision making in social and academic situations, while creating a peer and adult support network. With the KHS Bridge program, students are off to a great start to the school year before they even set foot in their first class as a High School freshman.
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