By Staff Writer Shreya Narayan
Naperville North High School will replace its Freshmen Year Initiative program (FYI) with a new system called Link Crew in the fall of the 2014-15 school year, according to NNHS Special Education teacher and Link Crew sponsor Hilary Lehman.
Hosted by the Boomerang Project, Link Crew is a nation-wide transitional program made to help bridge the gap between freshmen and the rest of the school.
“Link Crew is more community based, instead of information-based [FYI]. We’re really working hard to get the freshmen to feel part of the Huskie community,” Lehman said.
According to current FYI sponsor Deanna Nesci, FYI has been operating for 12-15 years. Though the program is being replaced, Nesci said that no major problems prompted the change.
Lehman said that Link Crew was selected because administration believes that it will provide a more effective program to involve freshmen. Link Crew will continue to serve many of the functions FYI currently handles, as, according to Lehman, administration still feels it is important to disseminate information from counselors to the freshmen in some way.
According to Lehman, Link Crew will follow the same schedule as FYI. Freshmen will report to Link Crew twice a week for half of their lunch period. Although the instructional program will only take place first semester, there will still be Link Crew sponsored social events second semester.
In addition, fewer freshmen (approximately 10-12) will be in each Link Crew class in order to create stronger relationships between the freshmen and the junior/senior mentors, said Lehman.
“One of the main points with Link Crew is to stay connected to the freshman,” Lehman said. “Our goal is to create a friend through Link Crew and the freshman can look up to their mentor as a big brother or sister.”
Lehman said NNHS is also incorporating Link Crew in hopes of better involving the freshmen class. According to Lehman, 14% of NNHS students are not participating in any clubs. The expectation is that Link Crew will lessen this percentage.
According to a study on the Link Crew website, the number of freshmen referrals and suspensions in other schools have decreased as a result of being involved with Link Crew. And as of last year, 3,354 high schools throughout the United States, Canada, and Thailand have implemented Link Crew.
NNHS is partnering with Naperville Central High School (NCHS) to introduce Link Crew. Lehman said other nearby schools, including Waubonsie Valley High School and Stevenson High School, have also adopted Link Crew.
Other teachers sponsoring the Link Crew program include Melissa Mitchem, Emily Bishop, Hilary Lehman, Ebony Baker, John Noffke, Brian Van Kley, and Erin Cattell.
“Everything positive you can think of that a freshman needs, Link Crew supports it,” said Lehman.
Rachel • Apr 15, 2014 at 7:23 pm
I think this is an awesome idea and I really love Mrs. Lehman. I hated FYI and I’m so excited to be a part of this program next year!
Hanna Brubaker • Mar 12, 2014 at 11:34 pm
I actually did not like FYI at all. The teacher I had never remembered who I was, even though i had her the next year for a class. If anything, FYI made me feel more isolated from the rest of the school. We’d come into lunch halfway through the period and encroach upon the other students, often ending up sitting in the lockers because there were no tables for us. So, i’m glad it is going.
Luc Waked • Mar 12, 2014 at 10:02 pm
I also think that the fact that this program has worked so well in other schools only adds to the fact that it is a great thing to start up in our own school.
I honestly feel that the most important thing is to make freshman feel like they are going to something fun, not a mandatory learn-about-high-school meeting.
Freshman don’t want to feel like they have to learn about high school. They want to feel like they already know how things work.
Luc Waked • Mar 12, 2014 at 9:59 pm
I was considering applying to be a leader for this program.
I did not end up applying, but I do think that this program is a really great way to help freshman get involved in activities at NNHS.
Hannah Novak • Mar 9, 2014 at 10:07 pm
This is actually a way better idea. I know on guard we have big/little siblings and it’s actually helped everyone. Upperclassmen learn to be better leaders and the underclassmen feel more comfortable because they have someone they can ask for help from about things most upperclassmen don’t even consider a big deal (like where to order flowers for dances or how to get a work permit).