Stepping foot into the Ernie Rose Gymnasium during freshman orientation at the end of August seemed surreal to incoming freshman Jamie Sheehan.

She was starting the next four years of her life, initially surrounded by strangers all feeling the same way that she had been feeling, nervous, but excited.

Entering high school from middle school is a drastic time of transition and adjustment to the fast paced environment that high school offers.

For Sheehan, high school was a difficult assimilation, but worth it in the end.

Sheehan started her freshman year of high school at Bishop Blanchet coming from St. Luke in Shoreline.

Going from a middle school class size of less than 30 students to more than 200 students her freshman year, the overwhelming feeling of unfamiliarity seemed to spin all around her.

The comfort and familiarity of middle school was dispersed and changed into a brand new environment in high school.

“Adjusting to class schedules and coming out of my comfort zone were some of the initial challenges I faced,” said Sheehan.

Leaving the familiar faces from the past years of grade school can be challenging, but allowed the opportunity for Sheehan to meet and become aware of the new faces around her.

Sheehan is a part of the spring musical crew right now for the production of “Mary Poppins”, but was previously a part of the freshman soccer team and the bowling team earlier in her freshman year.

When asked what Sheehan looks forward to her next three years at Blanchet, she said that she was excited to get to know her classmates better and be a part of stage crew again.

Bishop Blanchet offers a multitude of ways for one to get involved with their class. From the freshman retreat to senior Kairos, the Bishop Blanchet community and ones classmates ultimately become a family.

For Sheehan, the freshman retreat was an amazing way for her to get to know her classmates this year and start the crazy journey high school has to offer with one another.

“The freshman retreat was very memorable,” said Sheehan,” I got to meet new classmates and get closer with some people I knew before.”

The initial transfer into high school was a wild ride for Sheehan, but she does not regret taking the initial steps into the gymnasium where she then become acquainted with the start of the next four years of her life.