On December 22nd, nine Ward Melville alumni gather in the LGI to help quell a common fear among high schoolers — college. The range of universities represented by each student was very diverse, with the farthest school being the University of Alabama. Prestigious schools such as Cornell were also represented.  The topics discussed by the alumni ranged from safety on school campuses to roommate problems and other post Ward Melville issues.

The meeting had some humorous highlights, where scary anecdotes were turned into light jokes as well. “I have gotten mugged once,” admitted a student at the University of Pittsburgh. “But I only had three dollars, so whatever.” Another student at the University of Alabama reminisced about her first roommate. “She’d talk to her boyfriend at four in the morning, so we had some stuff to work out.”

Talking to scared seniors was not all that the alumni did, however. Throughout the day, small groups of ex-students repping their school could be seen throughout the halls, saying hi to friends and teachers. During his third period AP US History class, Dan Conklin was able to meet with alumni that had graduated in 2016.  

“I think that when they come back and catch up on how their education is going and how their lives are progressing, it’s just gratifying to know that in some way our building here and the people in it played some part in their success.”