The start of a new school year means big changes for us all. The common question everyone at South wants to know is what does his or her future hold? What is the future of Glenbard South?  Sandra Coughlin has not been at Glenbard South very long, but she wants South to be the best it can be, especially with all the new changes currently happening at school.

          Ms. Coughlin stated, “As a school we are very strong, academically.”

        She went on to say that she was hoping to continue this trend with the changes involving the new PARCC testing common core standards. She said, “We are going to be focusing on integrating [the changes] into the existing curriculum. One of my goals is to help students and teachers as they try to navigate through that.”

       In addition to the preparation of PARCC testing, Ms. Coughlin stated that she would like to see more AP classes available at South, such as AP Environmental Science. Whereas, many other schools have a more diverse number of AP classes to choose from, and that is what she wants to have at South.

        Then, Ms. Coughlin went on to talk about the record number of students who participated in extracurricular activities last year. 951  students, 75% of the entire student body, participated in an extracurricular activity last year. That is an 11% increase for the total student body, and there was an 18% increase in the freshman class alone. She said, “We really want to try to support that this year, and we really want to try and support the new LINK Crew.”

        LINK is made up of junior and senior leaders in order to try and help the freshman become acclimated to school. She said, “It’s a research based program, so we know it works in connecting kids with school and their success in academics as well as their social adjustment.”

        Technological changes have also become a part of school life. The freshman class has been given iPads as the school has been trying to change to a more digital future. With the iPads come questions such as how are students going to be prepared for this shift? Ms. Coughlin said, “I think the teachers are going to learn a lot from students. You guys are so savvy with your technology! We also have “Lunch and Learns” where teachers will bring their lunch and go to Studio South where she [Ms. Wallace] will be able to work with them on specific topics.”

        Change has come to South, but students need to embrace it. They are the future of Glenbard South, and their future is now. Students should take on every challenge one step at a time and create an even better environment to be in.