A familiar uniform, a well-worn pair of cleats and the hopes for a fresh start. For many high school athletes, transferring means more than just changing schools: it means stepping into unknown locker rooms, creating new bonds and conquering fresh challenges on and off the field.
Behind every transfer student is a story of a search for a place they truly belong. Papillion-La Vista High School is known for its amazing culture and how welcoming people are to new faces. Senior pitcher Chloe Cannon transferred for her senior year because she loved the culture at Papillion.
“A lot of my friends go here,” Cannon said. “The school also has a very strong softball program that I wanted to be a part of.”
The people at Papillion-La Vista welcome everyone so it’s really an easy decision to make when it comes to deciding where to transfer. Sophomore goalie Maggie Smiley wanted a change from her old school environment and she already felt at home when she transferred.
“It’s nice because the teachers are a lot better here,” Smiley said. “I already knew people here and I wanted to transfer because of my friends.”
The best part about becoming a Monarch is how easy it is to adapt to the new environment. Teachers and students will do everything they can to make new people feel at home. Junior corner Coen Hoevet moved from rival school Papillion and he never once felt out of place at his new school.
“My teammates and coaches helped me by being welcoming,” Hoevet said. “They were very welcoming and made the team feel like one big family.”
There is nothing easy when it comes to transferring schools, students leave behind old memories and learn to make new ones. Everyone deals with their own struggles when trying to fit in a new environment. Nonetheless, starting over is never easy for anyone. Whether it comes to learning new names and faces or even having to memorize new plays. For Cannon, her challenges weren’t any easier than anyone else’s to overcome.
“The most challenging part is having to play with an entirely new group of girls and coaches,” Cannon said. “Having to learn new names, positions and other things is also very difficult.”
Unfamiliar environments are hard to adapt to, but at Papio new students receive an unlimited amount of care because of all of the help people receive from peers.
“It was hard meeting new people and not knowing anyone,” Smiley said. “It was hard not knowing any of the coaches, but I met Coach Walsh on the first day and he was very welcoming.”
Getting to know different people is without fail a difficult challenge to overcome especially when you are new yourself. Making new friends is tough, but leaving behind your old friends is saddening. For Hoevet, he was no exception to this experience.
“The most challenging part had to be leaving my old friends behind,” Hoevet said. “I’m trying to adapt to everything by focusing on school and football.”
Without a doubt transferring is a strenuous decision that requires a lot of thinking and effort. Adjusting to new surroundings is stressful and never easy, but for transfers at Papillion-La Vista their peers made it less of a burden.
New challenges become new memories. New people and coaches become family. Leaving behind old memories is difficult but making new memories is always worth it.
