At 10:40am on January 4, the 11th and 12th grades gathered on the stage in the auditorium and sat across from the College Counseling team and eight Parker alumni currently in college. The stage lights shone, and the rest of the auditorium became dark.

Every year, a handful of recent Parker graduates come back to the school to answer questions and give advice to the high school upperclassmen.

This time around, the alumni on the panel were Megan Masters ‘14 (College of Charleston), Jadah Jones ‘14 (Kenyon College), Gaby Escalante ‘14 (Princeton University), Ben Weiss ‘16 (Yale University), Lucy Hartman ‘16 (Pitzer College), Sam Bright ‘13 (Ohio State University), Alli Bennett ‘14 (Amherst College), and Megan Stansbury ‘16 (Washington University).

Susan Weingartner, Director of College Counseling, explained how the group of interested alumni is narrowed down. “It was a little weirder this year,” she said. “Every year we have people ask. As we can, we try to say yes, until we get to a certain point.”

In previous years, Weingartner emailed specific alumni, but this year, there was a Facebook post that they could reply to.

From there, the College Counseling team picked certain alums based on factors such as grade, school, and if they’ve been on the panel before in order to ensure a wide variety of Parker graduates.

At the start of the panel, the alumni introduced themselves with their colleges and their majors, but some, like Weiss and Hartman, hadn’t made a final decision on their major yet. Both are still freshmen.

Weingartner asked a few questions to start the conversation, encouraging the juniors and seniors to ask questions as well. Some of the questions from the high schoolers concerned dining options, counseling options, and balancing social events with academics.

Other topics covered included the application process, class size, living arrangements, and sleep schedules.

While some of the alumni shared experiences at their different schools, there were also contrasting stories and routines.

“Just being smart about getting your work done everyday… I really worked hard and did that for myself,” Hartman said in response to a question about getting enough sleep. “I went to bed by 11 or 12, which I would say is pretty reasonable.”

Masters replied to the same question. “I have the exact opposite,” she said. “I usually go to bed at three or four, but I just make my classes later in the day because I do my best work at night.”

Weingartner emphasized how a variety of experiences is an aspect of college that College Counseling likes to highlight every year.

“We try hard to make sure that the representation is large schools, small schools, schools that are harder to get into, schools that are easier to get into,” she said. “When we can, we try to have a variety, but also know their stories a little bit.”

In other words, it was important for the College Counseling team to be familiar with the college process of each alum.

Every graduate had a lot to say during the panel and in reflection afterwards. In particular, they had thoughts on their return to Parker.

“I always notice whenever they’ve repainted something,” Bennett said. “They repainted the fourth floor recently, and now it’s all blue, and I was like, ‘Whoa!’”

For Hartman, the excitement came from seeing old faces. “I was really overwhelmed,” Hartman said. “There were so many people that I wanted to see… I was overwhelmed but very excited.”

Another important point was how everyone’s perceptions of college and high school have changed since leaving Parker.

“Yes, it’s different, but I think you’re ready for it by the time you get there, so it feels like a natural next step,” Bennett said. “Thinking about high school now, especially at Parker, I got a really great high school experience, and I think it took getting to college to realize just how special it was.”

Jones likewise felt prepared. “It helped me realize having a good support system while you’re in high school, the importance of having good friends,” she said. “Parker sets a good foundation to go to college.”

Some graduates remembered when they attended the alumni panel as high schoolers. “Last year, when I had this experience, I really took the information to heart,” Hartman said. “I loved hearing that stuff. But some of these things, you have to go through them. It’s a hard period of time no matter how you do it.”

Before they returned to college, the alumni had some parting words of advice for the current Parker upperclassmen.

“Don’t get overwhelmed in the process,” Jones said. “Just take it in small chunks ‘cause everyone’s gonna be fine.”

Hartman agreed, “I wish I would’ve known that I could be happy in a lot of places,” she said. “You will end up in the right place.”

Weingartner  said that this year’s panel differed from previous years in a positive way. Changes this year included the event space and a more enthusiastic attitude from the juniors and seniors.

“I think it went better than it’s ever gone, quite frankly,” Weingartner said. “We’ve always had it in the Harris Center… I liked the coziness of it. I was nervous that the auditorium would make it feel impersonal, but I don’t think it did.”

Rebecca Tebbe, one of two primary college counselors, was pleased with the engagement shown by Parker students. “The high schoolers this year seemed to show a more positive attitude during the panel,” she said. “They were really into the topics and asked a lot of engaging questions.”

Some students were ambivalent about the panel. “I applied ED to a school, to which I had gotten into, so I know where I’m going for sure, so it wasn’t super helpful,” senior Josh Kaufman said.  “That said, it did provide me with some helpful stuff to approach going to college.”

Juniors in particular felt like most of the advice they received was premature. “I think it gave us a lot of good perspectives on college life that might be really helpful senior year, junior Maya Sanghvi said. “Being a junior, however, it didn’t really give me any insight on how to approach the college process.”

All in all, with another Alumni Panel in the books, Weingartner stressed the importance of each individual alum’s personal college experience. She said, “It’s not really where you go, but what you do when you get there.”