As the bell rings, students clutter the halls racing to reach the heavenly gates. The clock ticks, slowly reaching 3:27, marking the end of a year and the start of summer. For students in the Freshman Academy, it signifies the beginning of what will soon be their sophomore year.

“I’m looking forward to being able to choose more classes [that are] regarded towards what I want to do,” freshman Amanda Smith said.

The Freshman Academy was created to give students coming in from middle school an easier transition into high school without simply throwing them in.

“[The Freshman Academy] shows us how to get used to high school, because we’ve all been in middle school until now,” freshman Caleb Schee said. “Most of us were really confused when we got here, at least I was. Where I used to live, there was a small high school, and there’s a lot [more] people here.”

Each school year teaches students new life lessons, whether it was through the teaching curriculum or through their own relationships with other people.

“I’ve become more mature,” freshman Avery Grounds said. “I’ve learned ways to help others, how to get along with others better and how to deal with my issues and emotions better.”

Students have new worries about the upcoming school year, including the potential for more challenging classes next year.

“It’s going to be difficult to keep grades up and all, but I should be able to do it,” freshman Samuel Rebuard said. “I will be in as many AP classes as possible, everything else will be Pre-AP, and I’ll still keep band and ROTC.”

While some students will remain in the same extracurricular activities, they will still have new changes to anticipate.

“I’ll probably do more stuff for ROTC,” Rebuard said. “We’re getting a new instructor, so I’ll have to adjust to them and they’ll have to adjust to us.”

Students have set personal goals based on changes they want to make for next year.

“Well I’m hoping I’ll be more mature,” Schee said. “I’m going to try to, if I get bored, not do stupid things. I’m just going to talk to people instead of going out and causing trouble.”

While freshman year brought its own set of lessons, students anticipate what their tenth grade year will teach them.

“It will introduce me to something new and help me grow in the future,” Grounds said.