On Oct. 10, Vernon Hills students came to school for a half day to participate in the events of Daring Day.
Freshmen participated in the RITE assembly, sophomores took the YouScience aptitude test and attended a career fair, Juniors took the optional PSAT, and Seniors who signed up worked on college essay revisions or participated in the RITE assembly as a leader.
RITE assembly
Freshmen were invited to watch the RITE assembly. RITE stands for the character values of Respect, Integrity, and Trust, which are emphasized through the Experience.
Guest speaker Mike Donahue spoke about walking a mile in each other’s shoes, since students may be experiencing hardships others have no clue about.
Will Blackmer (9) learned a lesson from the guest speaker.
“The most meaningful thing I heard [in the assembly] is that there will be bad days in your life and that’s unavoidable, but you have to overcome those days,” he said.
Students were then invited to share experiences from their lives in an open mic session.
Necalli Marquez (9) said, “The way everyone was able to get up there and talk about their problems in front of [the assembly] makes me think a lot deeper about what they’re all feeling, that maybe I should care [more].”
Daniel Spivak (9), believes the assembly allowed him to be more connected with his peers.
“You never know what someone is going through,” he said. “Always be polite to people, because one mean comment can tip over the bucket.”
RITE assembly leaders
Senior students had the chance to be RITE assembly leaders, where they facilitated activities in small groups of freshmen, or shared stories about their lives, too.
Ryan Klene (12) shared his experience as a RITE leader.
“It was a great opportunity for me to connect with freshmen on a better level. I remember when I was a freshman, it was really hard for me to connect with people besides my class,” Klene said. “[RITE] was a great way for me to connect more to the school as a whole.”
Activities that included both freshmen and seniors allowed some students to develop further connections.
“Being able to meet with freshmen in a small group has made me closer to them. Whenever I see them in the halls I make sure I always say hi to try and make their day,” Klene said. “These activities play into respect throughout the whole school and not the stereotype that seniors are scary.”
Shruti Rozario (12) participated in the assembly as a leader, hoping freshmen had seniors to look up to.
“Knowing you have seniors you can go to helps feeling you’re not alone in the school,” she said.
Rozario believes a highlight of the small group interactions was playing games like thumbs up seven up, but also talking in a smaller setting.
“[It was] a time where everyone in the group was vulnerable, and we were able to tell [each other] things that went on in the past. We shared stuff that we’re not going to share outside of the class,” she said.
Some freshmen felt connected to the seniors, too.
“The seniors speaking and helping out [with the assembly] really made it seem like we’re not alone,” said Julianne Oliva (9). “Knowing that upperclassmen and others in our school are going through similar things [to us] made me feel a lot more comfortable confronting certain feelings and coping with them.”
As a takeaway from the assembly, Colin McMurray (9) said he will act more respectful towards others and be kind to everyone from now on.
Career day
Sophomores took the YouScience aptitude test, which consisted of short games that practiced skills like idea generation, numerical reasoning, spatial visualization, visual comparison speed, timeframe orientation, vocabulary, and work approach.
Based on the results, students got back tools to better help plan their future, such as what careers they’re fit for and how their aptitudes optimize these paths.
Dev Khandelwal (10) shared his thoughts on the experience.
“[The YouScience test] was helpful by giving me strong career options to choose from,” he said. “It told me more about myself and which things I’m better at, such as I’m a brainstormer or that I’m a 3D visualizer, which helps me understand more about myself and the choices that I’ll make.”
Then, the students had a chance to talk to professionals from the community about different careers.
“The highlight of the day was talking to the career specialists and getting to know more about the careers, such as the salary, or what the ups and downs of the fields they work in are,” said Khandelwal. “My initial thought was that I would go into computer science, but [the fair] gave me some other options to consider such as architecture.”
Ben Rodriguez, director of college and career readiness for District 128, talked about the importance of having professionals from the Vernon Hills community at the fair.
“The Vernon Hills community brings in lots of experience, skills, and stories that can help students. These are potential connections for their future [..] to maybe ask [the professionals] questions later, or connect with them through opportunities after high school,” he said. “There’s potential here for exploration and networking.”
Networking is about making connections and building relationships. Rodriguez shared some tips on how to get started networking.
“Be yourself; it’s really important to represent who you are. Ask lots of questions; the professionals [at the fair] are excited to hear what students are thinking, and what their concerns, thoughts, worries, and challenges are,” he said. “Professionals are excited to talk about that, because it helps them know what’s on the mind of the people they’ll hire.”
PSAT testing
Juniors who signed up took the Preliminary SAT (PSAT). This year, testing was digitized.
Jaya Conner (11) shared what it was like to take the PSAT online.
“It was a lot different from the last time I took it because the last one was written; now it’s online. It’s a very different system […] we have our Chromebooks, and [the testing room] has a timer. I found it a lot easier,” she said.
Conner had mixed feelings about the online test at first.
“Going into it, I thought I wouldn’t like the online system […] but I found it easier because you have everything in one place, and you don’t have to keep flipping through the booklet and going back and forth between your answer sheets. It’s more efficient that way,” she said.
College essays revision
Seniors who signed up had the chance to revise their college essays with the help of adults.
Adarsh Jale (12) shared how this opportunity helped him.
“I got a lot of helpful feedback on the structure and content of essays…I changed a lot of one of my essays, and it’s shaped out much better now after the feedback,” he said.
Jale talked about the challenges some seniors face when applying to college.
“Some schools require three to four [essays], some require more. Some schools require an official transcript, or a separate application on their own, and some don’t.” he said. “If I wasn’t organized, I would definitely miss a lot of stuff, so that’s the reason I’m able to get through so much.”
Jale wants other seniors to know that although college applications are stressful, it’s important to remain calm. As for other grades, he advises to keep working.
“I know that it is going to be hard, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel,” he said.
Conclusion
Andrew Young, assistant principal at VHHS, shared what he hopes each grade took away from Daring Day.
He expects eleventh graders to have learned how to take the PSAT online, and to have developed their skills based on feedback.
He expects tenth graders to have reflected on the career clusters of their interest and how that may connect to their future and dreams.
He expects ninth graders to have more respect for their peers, and that they know there’s a support system available at school to talk about hard things.
“The kids in the hallways [students] see walking around everyday are experiencing really hard things all the time, [through RITE] we are able to respect each other,” he said.
Dr. Young said he appreciates the students at VHHS and their character.
“Our students in the school are special […], they’re exceptional. By exceptional, I mean they’re good people. They care,” he said.