“It was Interesting,” said Miranda Borero, a freshman from THAR 160 on her experience at Shadow Day this year, “I’ve never really done a ‘shadow’ project before so it felt very new.”
Shadow Day has returned after a nearly three-year hiatus due to the pandemic, and this year was as fun as ever. Shadow Day gave 40 Sonoma State freshmen a unique opportunity to hone their leadership skills by sharing their day with one of 50 high school juniors from Roseland Collegiate Prep. Each college freshman was a part of either a THAR-160 course or ENG-160, both year-long service-learning courses.
smiling Sonoma State students.
Upon their arrival on the campus, the high school students were greeted by dozens of cheerful college freshmen who led them to the Wine Spectator Learning Center. There, they were welcomed by Dr. Stacey Bosick, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, before they were paired off and sent on their way.
The high school students accompanied their college partners to classes, club meetings, and lunch at the Kitchens. They also were given a tour of the Recreation Center, Makerspace in the library, and the Sauvignon dorm showroom. “My classmates showed the students around campus like some of the buildings, the University store, and the Kitchens,” said Miranda.
Both college and high school students learned from each other as they bonded throughout the day. Miranda told me that she was nervous about the impression she would leave on her group, “I was nervous… working with kids to young adults was a huge step up… thankfully our professor told my group that our [high school] students enjoyed themselves which was a big relief.” Dr. Tim Wandling of ENG-160, said “They felt this group was really into the collegiate experience.” Dr. Wandling also noted how engaged the younger students were in classes, “They [ENG-160] thought the RCP students really enjoyed the structured debates in class around AI rights.”
Rec Center
At the start of the morning, the room was filled with uncertainty and unanswered questions. Students arrived on campus unsure of what college was all about or if they even wanted a higher education after high school, but their college mentors made sure that they knew that a college education is a realistic option for everyone.
Shadow Day was a memorable experience, and it was definitely way more fun than just a campus tour. Students get a much more real sense of what campus life is like, and I wish more schools participated in events similar to this. Not only was it educational, but it was also fun! It was amazing to follow the groups as they slowly became more comfortable and developed friendships. They all had their bittersweet goodbyes but hoped that they would see each other again soon as classmates.