The Smoke Signal

By News Editor Jonathan Liu

Energetic cheering and applause erupted in the MSJ gym quad when more than 100 Link Crew, Peer Resource, and Leadership 2 (L2) members welcomed the freshman class on August 16.

Link Crew, Peer Resource, and L2 students welcoming the freshman class

Link Crew is a nationally recognized student leadership program dedicated to building a sense of community between upperclassmen and freshmen. This year’s Link Crew Orientation — a re-initiated effort to acclimate freshmen to MSJ and encourage participation in social events throughout the year — was Link Crew, Peer Resource, and L2’s first collaboration. About 200 freshmen attended the event, at which they met with school administrators, student body leaders, and participated in a series of social activities, one being 64 squares, a team exercise promoting overcoming adversity and depending on the community.

Freshmen participate in social activities and team exercises

The event was the culmination of a summer-long series of meetings between Peer Resource officers, Peer Resource advisers Rachel Tevlin and Tiffany Stelle, and L2 members Seniors Edward Lu and Danielle Hsieh. Stelle said, “Combining Link Crew into Peer Resource is helping us build the program so that we have more Link leaders, and adding L2 is helping us get involved in more activities on campus — to really help the population as a whole.”

Peer Resource President Senior Kayla Louie said, “I’m glad that Link Crew is once again a part of our campus because it brings students together to make MSJ a more caring and unified community.”

Photos by News Editor Jonathan Liu