Nearly nine months ago, the Jesuit High School class of 2018 attended classes for the first time.  Now, as they prepare to enter their sophomore year at Jesuit, they are offered some advice by the class of 2017.

During sophomore year, students often take harder classes.  Sophomore Matthew Kiyama explained that overall, sophomore classes are a step up from freshman classes in both workload and the difficulty of the concepts.  Matt advises upcoming sophomores to take advantage of the block schedule and plan out their work carefully.  Similarly, sophomore Benjamin Holland identified procrastination as a problem for many sophomores trying to adjust to their new work.

“Get sleep, and do projects before they’re due” Benjamin said, giving simple yet effective advice.

Meanwhile, sophomore Maxwell Adams encouraged current freshmen to stay alive in their co-curricular activities.  He enjoys drumming for the Symphonic Band and swimming on Jesuit’s team.

“Find something that you like and pursue it,” Maxwell said.

Co-curricular activities provide students with a core group of friends that shares their interests and experiences.  In addition, by doing something that they enjoy, students can ease their stress.  While some co-curriculars provide their own challenges and stresses, they still provide a respite from the everyday “grind” of school work.

While students participate in and enjoy co-curricular activities during all four of their years at Jesuit, it is especially important for upcoming sophomores to seek leverage between work and leisure as they undertake more work than they are used to.

While other students told upcoming sophomores how to succeed and enjoy themselves during their sophomore year, sophomore Andrew Bercinio wanted to tell them a way to set a positive role model for the incoming class of freshmen.

“Don’t bully freshmen, you were once in their shoes,” Andrew said.
Andrew refers to teasing received by most freshmen when they first enter Jesuit.  Anyone can be harmed by teasing, even if the teasing is meant to be a joke.  From his personal experience as a sophomore, Andrew believes that sophomores are especially susceptible to look down upon freshmen.  Andrew noticed that he and his friends felt particularly important at the start of sophomore year, as they were no longer the youngest on campus.  He insists that that is no reason to bully freshmen.

Diligence, balance, and kindness might not create a perfect class of sophomores as soon as the class of 2018 takes up their new roles on campus this fall, but these three virtues serve as a good start.  The remaining journey towards a successful year lies in the hands of the individual members of the upcoming sophomore class.