Why I’m happy I was the “new student”

By Lauren Toscano
11th Grade Student

I have never been a new student. I went to the same school from kindergarten to eighth grade, and then I started at a high school in ninth grade, just like everyone else. I had new teachers and things like that, but all the other people in my grade did, too, so it wasn’t really that scary.

I started MMI in eleventh grade, and I guess I was nervous about the change — I figured it would be a harder school where everyone knew each other, and I would never be able to catch up. However, I was greatly surprised.

Being a teenage girl, drama comes with the territory, and I was scared that the girls would already be in cliques, and I would remain an outsider. To my delight, there were no cliques, and everyone’s really nice and friendly. No one has ever made me feel weird or left out from being the new girl.

The teachers are really great, too. Unlike the teachers at your average public high school, the teachers at MMI treat you like young adults, as opposed to treating you like children. The material in the classes is more adult, and the assigned reading is far more advanced than the reading I got at my high school. The class sizes are smaller, which allows for more one-on-one with your teacher, if you’d like. The teachers are also more than willing to assist or tutor you outside of class if you need help with some of the material you’ve learned.

The classes you can take at MMI are also different than those of your average high school. You can take classes like robotics, or my favorite class, Myths, Masks, and Miracles, which focuses on superheroes in movies and literature. The material, like that of any other class, can be challenging, but if you study often and take good notes, you’ll be fine.

Another great thing about MMI is that, as a junior, I get the privilege of having a college counseling class once a week, which helps me prepare for college. This class teaches the sort of things to look for in a school, and what schools are looking for in applications and test scores.

All in all, MMI is a great experience, and I am very grateful I transferred over from my public high school.