Semester 34: Classes, Skiing, and College Counseling!

This past week has been pretty busy in classes. We only had one full day of relaxation after second expedition before we were thrown back into the saddle. We’ve got a lot going on in preparation for Parents’ Weekend: a creative science project on how climate change impacts certain species; an English poem that is sure to make our parents cry; math projects dealing with real movement and games; and history mock trials, compendiums, and town hall meetings. In addition, we are also in the midst of a close-reading English essay and, for Spanish students, we are working on fake emails to send to the directors of certain organizations. We are chipping away at the assignments one by one and looking forward to sharing our work with our families.

Starting Friday afternoon students began to meet with one of the four college counselors assigned to them. Many kids were nervous at first, since it was one of the first times they sat down and really thought about college. That being said, everyone came out of their meetings full of energy with new perspective.  We were all impressed with the level of energy and thoughtful consideration our counselors were able to give us, even if we were the last person they met with on Saturday evening. Now that the meetings are over there has been a buzz of nervous excitement in regards to the beginning of the college process.

On Saturdays we get the opportunity to go explore the wonderful town of Leadville. We enjoy stocking up on Nutella, coffee, Oreos, and almond butter at the Safeway, and going into the thrift shops for costumes and awesome outfits. We also enjoy spending time in the local coffee shop, indulging in lattes and iced coffee. Sometimes we even pick up a pizza from High Mountain Pies to bring back to campus.

Although we typically visit town during the day, this past Saturday night we had HMI’s first ever night on the town. We divided up into groups, donned our finest mountain chic apparel, and hit up an array of Leadville’s fine dining establishments. We gorged ourselves on French fries, waffle sundaes, deep friend buffalo burgers, and the famous High Mountain Pies. Everyone was excited to be off campus for an evening and experience Leadville’s night life. After dinner we all went star gazing at the local football field, which ended in a giant group hug–a symbol of the relationships we’ve formed and how close Semester 34 has become.

Every Sunday we have a fun optional activity. Past Sundays have included going to the Breckenridge Rec Center and Nordic skiing. This weekend it was a trip to Ski Cooper, the local ski hill. By this point, we all know the mountain well (thanks to Ski Week) and were allowed to ski where we wanted. Everyone had a great time. Most students spent the day on skis, but some students snowboarded for the first time, and others got to go sledding. We returned to campus exhausted but thrilled that we were able to spend the day engaging in such exciting activities.

Now, we are anxiously awaiting the arrival of our families! We cannot wait to share this special place with them during Parents’ Weekend.