You finally step foot onto Bearcat territory, move your luggage into your new home, wave goodbye to your parents, and pause, realizing another year has commenced. Some of us traveled over fifteen hours, flying halfway across the planet, to get here, while others took just a fifteen-minute car ride. Yet we all gather here because Hotchkiss is the place we chose and the place we love.

Preps: you are new to the campus, to the faculty, to the dining hall, to the MAC, to everything that Hotchkiss has to offer. Don’t be overwhelmed by your initial impressions; you have advisors, class deans, and, above all, friends who are in the same boat. Work together, ask questions, get out there, and enjoy your time.

Lower Mids: you are refreshing what you remember from the previous year and getting back into your routines. Some of you haven’t seen each other all summer and are finally back together, while others are stepping onto the campus for the first time. Welcome new peers, continue relationships from prep year, and even better, make new ones. You still have three more years, which  will go by more quickly than you can imagine.

Upper Mids: you are excited that you can take more electives and are looking forward to new freedoms. You only have one more marking period left of study hall and no longer have lights out. Soon, you will be able to plan your afternoons and evenings the way you see fit. You will have to judge when you can make time for your homework, sports, clubs, meetings, and when you can hang out with your peers to catch up on the day.

Seniors: take each and every moment of your final year to embrace every opportunity Hotchkiss offers while serving as role models for the rest of the student body. You are the oldest students on campus. The students look to you, and the faculty trust your decisions and foster a relationship so that they can effectively communicate with the ears and mouth of the student body. It is your job to set the tone for your final year and for the years that follow.

Whether you are a new prep or a four-year senior, we are all here to explore our interests, grow as individuals, and make friends that will last a lifetime.