A new year brings back traditions and begins fresh starts. Along with the induction of a large freshman class and a number of new staff members, several new school programs have been introduced.
Along with the Fully Alive program, the Big Hart and Little Hart program was introduced to help connect upperclassmen with the younger students in their faith family classes.
“It’s my fourth year here, and we never had a set program in faith family,” senior Mikey Hanson said. “This gave us upperclassmen the opportunity to get to know some of the underclassmen better.”
The random pairings of older students with underclassmen have led to new interactions and connections where there previously was, according to senior Ella Howard, a separation between the grade levels.
“I was excited to get to know the underclassmen a little bit more,” Howard said. “For years I had never really known anybody outside my grade.”
According to herd coordinator Jessica Switzer, the Big Hart and Little Hart pairings have allowed for deeper connections in the Miege community and helped lessen feelings of isolation.
“Miege has always had an amazing community,” Switzer said. “The Big Hart and Little Hart match-ups is just one facet of keeping the Stag community strong.”