High school students explore options in alternative schooling
CHECKING IT OUT (Evelyn Caicedo)
Seniors and juniors from high schools around Orange County came to Saddleback last Thursday for a glimpse at community college life.
Some students came to help them decide on a path through their college years. Others came to meet the instructors and programs they would be working with at Saddleback. More still came for the free In ‘n Out burgers they were promised.
Several tours showed the campus to the potential freshmen. They clogged the hallways in each building, listening to what purpose each building served.
After the tours ended, the students were released to the main quad to peruse tables set up by the school. Many departments, clubs, and services set up tables to help guide the students to the information that was pertinent to each individual.
Robert Farnsworth, a horticulture instructor, and Tina Maldini, a greenhouse assistant, displayed a sampling of the work done by horticulture students. They offered parsley seed packets to interested students and were more than happy to answer questions about their programs.
Farnsworth was very satisfied with senior day.
“It has been a very good day so far,” Farnsworth said. “Many students have stopped by to learn about our program.”
The fashion department also had a variety of student works displayed at their table. Malia Hill, faculty and project coordinator for the fashion department, was satisfied with how senior day turned out, and commented, “We ran out of our brochures to hand out.”
“A ton of high school students stopped by our table today,” Hill said. “Most [of them] were very interested in fashion before approaching us.”
Sean Dodd, 18, undeclared, listened and watched as the biology, chemistry and physics departments presented information about some of the processes studied in their fields.
“We are aware that many high school students do not know what direction they are going,” said Marcelo Pires, biology instructor. “So we are here to inform the students about their opportunities, and answer their questions.”
As senior day came to a close, Didi Karlsson, 17, graphic design, gave her thoughts about the event. An anime aficionado, Karlsson spent most of her day meeting members of the anime club, and less time actually looking at the available school programs.
“I checked out the graphics table, but it didn’t really catch my interest, considering I’m more into anime and Japanese culture,” Karlsson said. “I have to say being at the anime table was pretty nice.”