A feeling of enthusiasm filled the gym as the incoming freshmen walked inside for their first all-school orientation. After having their own orientation the day before, the building buzzed with talk of beginning high school. Sophomores and juniors joined the bleachers before the senior mob erupted. After a long and sleepless night, the class of 2014 ran into the gym, exuded school spirit, and chanted, “Seniors! Seniors!” Their final school orientation was about to begin. The theme for this year’s orientation was “Creating New Roads.”

Student Council President Siobhan Plummer had been looking forward to presiding over her first school function. “I was excited yet really nervous because I wanted to kick off everyone’s year in a fabulous way.” Plummer and other student council members led the girls in traditional and fun songs such as “Peeling the Banana” and “Singing in the Rain.” The freshman class had a chance to meet and bond with students from other grades in their “car groups”- ranging from the Volkswagen Beetles to the Jaguars.  Each group had a mixture of freshman, sophomores, juniors, and seniors. After a few icebreakers, they participated in activities such as creating a group cheer and spelling Academy-related words with a stack of scrambled letters.