Two new dolphins have joined our pod
I joined St. Augustine in 5th grade. It was a hard start because I had to adjust to so many things. Fifth grade was a long time ago (relatively), but this year we have a lot of new students who may be going through the same thing as I did and who also bring with them a lot of new experiences to share.
I decided to ask one of the new students what she thought of CSA and how her experience has been like. Francesca Medrano, a new junior in high school, shared that her beginning has been hard because she was used to her routine and it has now been taken for a spin. An added challenge was to start a new school year online, but with the help of new teachers and classmates she adjusted just fine.
As a new CSA student, she shared how she loved that everyone gave her a warm welcome and treated her nicely. This was also what surprised her the most because she never expected for her classmates to greet her in such a special way. The few days we had face-to-face classes she was able to connect with more people. She also shared that her favorite CSA class is Spanish due to the dynamic of the class. Also, one of her favorite pastimes is to play volleyball! We are so excited to have her on the volleyball team! Additionally she shared that her favorite color is green and that she aspires to study theater of performing arts or agricultural engineering. Who knows, maybe we will soon have a dolphin actor on the big screen!
Gabriela and Francesca smiling behind their masks during break. Taken by author.
A second new dolphin, Gabriela Brenes, is another junior who recently started her journey at CSA. She has shared that she is very grateful for having been able to adapt successfully to her classes, schedules, and teachers. “It has been a great experience”, she said. She feels that she has a lot to learn from the school and its people because Covid has been a huge setback for her, especially because she started at CSA during online classes. She recalls that one of the things she is bummed about was the short time she spent in face-to-face classes and she looks forward to this second return to school.
Gabriela shares that her favorite class is English and AP French. She wants to study business administration with a minor in communications. She also shared that she loves all colors but the ones that represent her the most are white and purple.
As the interview came to a close, I asked Gabriela what her biggest challenge was; she answered that she couldn’t say because besides her being new, she has yet to explore the school since we have been online all this time.