Raymond Dong said that it scared him to death.
“All of the seniors were cheering, all decked out in green,” he told a group of prospective freshmen last week as Badin held its annual "Eighth Grade Day."
“I felt weird, wondered what I was doing here," he said. "But it worked out well.”
Dong, who served in a roundtable discussion on life at Badin High School, explained that unlike most of his classmates, he didn’t go to a parochial elementary or junior high. He barely went to junior high at all.
Rather, he came up through the Talawanda schools (his father is a professor at Miami University) and attended seventh grade in the McGuffey Foundation School.
“We only had 80 kids in grades K through 8,” he said, “so it was a lot smaller.”
After finishing the seventh grade, however, Dong took a placement test, skipped the eighth grade, and was accepted at Badin, a year younger than his classmates.
“So I didn’t know a single person on my first day of school,” he said, “and all the seniors cheering only made me feel worse. I did not want to get out of the car.”
Still, “It was one of the best decisions I ever made,” he said. “I am currently tied for first in my class.
“Even though I was younger than everybody else and didn’t know anyone, everyone at Badin was so nice and welcoming. Even if you are the only person from your school who comes here, you’ll still make friends.”
His age, in fact, was a good conversation starter.
“Kids would come up to me in the hall and ask how old I was,” he said. “When I’d tell them, they’d say, 'Boy, you must be really smart.’ ”
The only time he felt out of place for being younger, he said, was when his friends were getting their driver’s license.
“That was a big thing,” he said, “but I had to wait.”
Selling Badin to eighth-graders
Friday was “Eighth Grade Day” at Badin High School.
This is the day that potential freshmen are bused in from St. Julie’s, Sacred Heart and other area parochial schools to get a taste of Badin green.
Raymond Dong and five other seniors — Alex Rieman, Britney McGraw, Devon Cooke, Brianna Listerman and Nick Bolton, all Badin Ambassadors — took to the stage of the Little Theatre for a roundtable discussion of what life is like at their school.
“They’re going to tell you everything they wished they knew when they were freshmen,” said Dirk Q. Allen, Badin’s director of admissions. “They’ll tell you what they like about Badin High School and offer advice so that you’ll be better prepared to go to high school.”
Dong broke down the Badin experience into three aspects: spirituality, academics and extracurriculars.
“Badin is a Catholic school, so you will have a spiritual life here,” he said. “But we also stress service, helping the community out.”
His community service efforts have included giving up his lunch periods to tutor an underclassman in math, serving as a team leader in the Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership program, and volunteering at McCullough-Hyde Memorial Hospital.
“That’s been a great experience,” he said, “to see people so happy when you help them out.”
The academics at Badin can be tough, he said, but he likes the challenge and sees the rewards to come by taking classes in high school for college credit.
“It’s a lot of work, but when you get to college, you won’t have to take those classes, so that will leave you time for other things,” he said.
Extracurricular activities, he told the eighth-graders, are important to help students enjoy their high school years.
“Having a social life is also really important to prepare you for going to college,” he said.
His advice for the potential Rams: “Class participation is key. Not only does it help you stand out and let your teachers get to know you, but it will help you with your grades if you participate. You may have a B-plus, but the teacher may go ahead and give you an A when you have been participating.
“So that helps you maximize your potential. Your parents pay good money for you to come here, so get some good grades to show them it was worth it.”
Dong has been a Badin Ambassador since he was a freshman, said Allen, who serves as the group’s adviser along with development director Angie Gray.
There are about 100 of the students who serve as a sort of public relations arm for the school.
In addition to planning and executing "Eighth Grade Day," the ambassadors also host a Shadow Day event and ice cream socials that helps the school recruit new students.
“You have to apply to be an ambassador,” Allen said. “You go through an interview process with student officers.”
A good ambassador should be “outgoing, well-spoken and not afraid to interact with people they don’t know,” he said. “They are students who want to get others to be a part of the Badin family.”
Dong, one of this year’s officers, is a model ambassador, he said.
“He is someone who has really embraced Badin High School,” Allen said. “He didn’t know anybody when he came here, and now he’s one of our best representatives.”
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