Every year, Loy Norrix students get a visit from LN alumni who have sat in the same seat just a couple years ago to tell then what life may be like once they have graduated from high school. 

As college students finish off their fall semester, they are given an opportunity to come back to Loy Norrix and provide students with information about their college experience while the students have the opportunity to answer questions coming from a person who has graduated high school within the last 5 years. 

Johnny Edwards, a former Loy Norrix principal and assistant superintendent of secondary education for KPS, started Alumni Day in December of 2008 and the tradition has continued throughout the years. 

“Promise students cannot pay the Promise donors back, but they can pay the Promise forward. The purpose of Alumni Day is to give Promise students the opportunity to pay the Promise forward by returning to their former high school to share their collegiate experiences and challenges with current high school students,” said Edwards. 

Some of the things that students learned from the alumni is how many credit hours are needed to graduate college, what types of jobs college students have and how much they work, how room and board works, and even how they balance college and work. Students also learned about the tiny details that most people don’t think about when going into college, things like how much time spent in the dorm, how to cook, choose a roomate and, how much free time students actually have outside of school or work.    

One LN sophomore, Tyler Willard, discovered a lot about the requirements of college and gained more insight into some individual classes and how certain classes are more online-based, while others might be more hands-on, depending on the professor and the subject.

“I discovered how many credit hours are needed to graduate, and what the professors in college are like. It was very helpful because I knew almost nothing about what college life is like,” said Willard.

Although much of the information given during Alumni Day can be provided by teachers, hearing it come from someone who just recently walked down the halls of Loy Norrix makes it more meaningful. Knowing that these LN alumni are pursuing their further education is promising. Principal Christopher Aguinaga wants students to get a glimpse of what life after high school will look like so that they aren’t blindsided after high school. 

“I’m hoping that younger kids like our freshman will hear the alumni and spark an idea for what is possible, and for older kids they can see what the near future will look like,” said Aguinaga.