By Vanessa Pena

Walking into the halls of Lane in your early teens, not knowing where any of your classes are, with new thousands of new faces surrounding you, can be very intimidating.

However, the new incoming freshmen no longer have to worry about being the smallest of the bunch, thanks to the Academic Center students.

Marvin Junay, Div. 579, less than five feet tall, is glad there are seventh graders. This way he is not the youngest one around.

“I bet I am more muscular than them, but Lane is too big for a small person like me,” Junay said.

Freshman Stephanie Tariga, Div. 573, does not feel any older than or superior to the seventh graders. Instead, she continues to feel intimated by the upperclassmen and meeting new people.

“I still feel the same because we don’t see the seventh graders, and I am still short and small,” Tariga said.

Jamir Jackson, Div. 752, is not struggling with his new surroundings claiming he feels more mature attending high school compared to other friends his age just in middle school.

“I’m not intimidated because I am taking higher level classes so others should be intimated by us,” Jackson said.

Jackson’s only issue at Lane is getting called “cute” by the upperclassmen that talk to him.

Another newbie to Lane this year, Ivan Chavez, Div. 575, does not feel any intimidation since he is from a big city. Chavez is just looking forward to the club opportunities that Lane has to offer.

While the others may not feel intimidated, freshmen such as Kristi Gallardo, Div. 573, and Zachary Pierucci, Div. 572, have noticed drastic differences between their old elementary school and high school.

“The hardest part would be finding people to talk to. My graduation class was me and 16 other kids,” Gallardo said.

While both Gallardo and Pierucci are adapting to Lane, they have managed to make plans for their future years. This includes Gallardo wanting to join the Environmental Club and Pierucci playing varsity hockey with another branch of high schools in Chicago.

Tyler Carrera, Div. 578, Mr. Paul Carrera’s son, is looking forward to playing lacrosse at Lane, and feels welcomed by the upperclassmen.

“The upperclassmen don’t bother us, which I like a lot,” Carrera said.

However, Samiha Uddin, Div. 573, is still trying to get comfortable at Lane and questions why freshmen are ever given a hard time.

“What did we ever do to the upperclassmen?” she said. “Why do they make fun? They were freshmen once.”