The start of the winter trimester is different at Proctor, because the better part of forty students whom we haven't seen since early June are back from Spain, France, Costa Rica and the North Atlantic. Sure, it's raining through fog outside, and snowsports are jogging through mud, but spirits are up. In fact, the scene after assembly in the lobby of the Community Center is riotous and loud.
Teenagers change a lot over six months, and there's a lot of catching up to do. Kids who have spent ten weeks living in a foreign nation or sailing through tropical depressions in the Caribbean return with a degree of maturity that is organic and very real.
Just look at how tall Jack is now!
Just kidding. Jack's been here all along. Kids who have been away tend to claim that it's great to be back, although the transition to five academic majors and dorm life can be a challenge.
Study the image below. What's going on here?
Answer: ninth graders (and teacher) respond to graphic images of the effects of sexually transmitted diseases in Megan Hardie's GROWTH class.
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