On my first day at Park I walked into the large foyer feeling both nervous and excited for my freshman year of high school.

Before switching to Park in ninth grade, I went to a private school known as Heilicher. I attended Heilicher from kindergarten through eighth grade. During my eighth grade year, we had a class of 17 students.

Because of the small class size, by the end of my time at Heilicher, I was ready for new social and academic options. Despite my excitement to switch to Park, I was also anxious about the changes I would experience.

Initially, the transition was challenging. I was dropped into an environment where most people already knew each other and had formed their friend groups. Many students already knew about Park from an older sibling or because of extracurriculars located at the high school. For me, everything was brand new.

For the first few weeks I stayed with people I already knew, but as time passed, I slowly branched out.

The choice to switch to Park was undoubtedly one of the best choices I have ever made. Park offers many social experiences as well as academic opportunities I was unable to experience at Heilicher such as AP and IB classes, large sports teams and school dances.

During my time at Heilicher, I was surrounded by a predominantly Caucasian Jewish population. Since starting at Park, I have had the opportunity to meet people of different religions and ethnicities expanding my worldview. 

The diversity at Park gives me more insight into how others in my community live, allowing me to gain a greater understanding of different religions, customs and lifestyles.

Even though my transition to public schooling was overwhelming at first, it taught me to be open minded in new situations.

As I immersed myself into the culture of Park, I found the change to be incredibly positive.