Sophomores attend first Eagle Buddies event of school year

Sophomores+Elizabeth+Yang%2C+Viveka+Saraiya%2C+Annabelle+Perng+and+Erana+Wan+eat+lunch+and+talk+with+their+Eagle+Buddies.+The+first+sophomore+Eagle+Buddy+event+of+the+year+took+place+on+Thursday.%0A

Andrew Chang

Sophomores Elizabeth Yang, Viveka Saraiya, Annabelle Perng and Erana Wan eat lunch and talk with their Eagle Buddies. The first sophomore Eagle Buddy event of the year took place on Thursday.

by Sharon Yan and Andrew Chang

Sophomores met with their Eagle Buddies for the first time on Oct. 6 at the Lower School for a group lunch and an afternoon of icebreakers activities.

Students received their Eagle Buddy pairs during advisory earlier this week. Freshmen and juniors who did not participate in Eagle Buddies attended a LIFE assembly on Thursday instead.

Students travelled to the Bucknall campus after seventh period and returned before sixth, spending about two hours with their Eagle Buddies during their  first meeting.

“I think it was a really fun experience,” Sonal Muthal (10) said. “My buddy was super cute, and she did all the same things as me. She wasn’t talking at first but then she started talking a lot, and we hula-hooped.”

The sophomore class wore to the event their white Eagle Buddies t-shirts they received the previous day. Later, students engaged in various activities, such as making friendship bracelets, playing on the playground structure and participating in various games. Others spent the afternoon with their Eagle Buddies on the field playing soccer and tag.

“[The best moment] was probably the time when we were playing knockout together and how the third graders managed to beat us,” Sukrit Ganesh (10) said. “[They] were definitely really good.”

Eagle Buddies events are typically held two to three times per year for sophomores, juniors and seniors. The purpose of this program is to connect upper school students with lower school students, allowing older kids to guide the younger ones and serve as a role model.

“I think [Eagle Buddies] gives [students] perspective of how their journey has taken them where they are, especially for those kids who used to be at the Lower School,” upper school chemistry teacher Andrew Irvine said. “It also builds community. It helps the kids see where they’re coming from, and the upper school kids realize that there’s more to this place than the Upper School.”

Seniors also welcomed their fifth grade Eagle Buddies to the Upper School on Thursday, and the junior class will meet with their fourth grade buddies at the next event.