9th grade academy is a two year old unit in the HAHS. 9th grade academy is a four day set of lessons that teach skills and responsibilities to all new freshmen. Some of these lessons include skills for success, personal accountability, positive community, and responsible citizenship. The freshmen are taught these skills to help adjust to high school life better and make it an easier shift. The lessons are created and designed to be fun but also informative. Some of these lessons include the dress code, code of conduct, agenda, and computer uses. 

     “The easiest part of 9th grade academy for me was keeping up with and understanding the tasks,” said Faithmarie Eisenhard. All the lessons did not require that much work, it required the student to listen to what the teacher was saying. If there was any work required, it was simple and easy to understand. One favorite lesson was a scavenger hunt around the school in Mr. Meyer’s class. It taught the freshmen where some of the classrooms and resources were in the building. “It was my favorite because it made navigating the school easier,” said Faithmarie. There were also other fun lessons similar to that, one including going to a resource in the building and taking a selfie, in Mrs. Herman’s class. This lesson was a way for students to learn about the people in the building who can help them. Several of the resource stops included the library, nurse’s office, tech room, and the guidance counselor’s office. This was also a student favorite because they got to walk around the school and explore. 

     All of these lessons are valuable and very helpful. Many of the freshmen have adjusted easier thanks to these lessons. “The whole idea of going into a whole new school with new people scared me, but the lessons made it all a lot easier and more manageable,” said Faithmarie. Students hope that these lessons will continue as a way to help incoming freshmen adjust and like high school life a whole lot more.