The Lincoln Log

Picture of students at program

As I walked through the hallways on the first day of school, I noticed several students wearing bright green t-shirts with the words Jump Start on them. I started to ponder, what was this all about? Was it a new brand I haven’t heard of? Was I behind on the latest fashion? Eventually, I found out that Jump Start is a new program determined to make Lincoln into a more welcoming and friendly place for our new freshmen.

Jump Start began at Lincoln in the spring through assistant principal Kristin Cacal with the help of peer resource coordinator Christopher Pepper and special education teacher Dana Martinez-Molez.

In March, Pepper and Martinez-Molez went down to Santa Cruz in order to receive information and training about Jump Start, a national program sponsored by an organization called Link Crew. It was later on renamed Jump Start at Lincoln by Pepper and Martinez-Molez due to the fact that the Lincs and “Link” were too similar. Cacal, whom was part of the WASC evaluation last year felt that Lincoln’s weakness was lacking a great freshmen program.

“Lincoln is a big school so it is easy to get lost here and sometimes students are unsuccessful because no one knows who they are,” Pepper said.

Jump Start consists of 82 juniors and seniors who volunteer to play the roles as big brothers and sisters, hoping to give guidance to the class of 2010. These generous Lincoln students came in during the summer, committing their own free time to train to become a Jump Start leader. They learned drills that allowed them to connect with the new ninth graders, gain new leadership skills and bond with fellow Jump Start volunteers. During the freshman orientation that took place on Aug. 24, the Jump Start leaders set off into pairs dividing into different classrooms to lead activities, intending to break the ice. One game consisted of 64 squares with leaders holding a main map. The freshmen had to make their way across the room, which showed them the message of how there are different paths in which you can take in life. They later set off into small groups for a tour around the Lincoln campus.

“It introduced us to Lincoln and made us feel comfortable,” freshman Jason Hornbuckle said.

In fact, this program hopes to help the freshmen academically, help the newcomers find programs involving counseling, guidance, or the tutoring, and the support they need in order to graduate. It provides the freshmen a smooth start giving them a clear mind. Jump Start is determined to help everyone find their purpose here at Lincoln High School. Juniors and seniors check up on their freshmen friends monthly to see their progress, and invite them to special events. These volunteers understand the struggles of adapting to a new school and share their own experiences as freshmen.

“My freshman year made me want to help out freshmen this year,” senior David Kim said.

Jump Start started off with a bang. Freshmen appreciated the assistance of the upper class, and the upper classmen had a beneficial experience, helping them gain useful leadership skills.

“I just wish they had it during my freshman year, but better now than never,” Kim said.