Representatives for twenty-four colleges and universities in Pennsylvania were available to Western Wayne High School students in grades nine through twelve on Tuesday, Oct. 8, in the high school gym.
High School guidance counselor Mrs. Rachael Palko coordinated this second annual event that so many high school students benefited from.
“The event has grown from last year,” Palko explained. “We have schools from further out like Villanova University and Slippery Rock University. We tried to expand our reach.”
Palko believes that students in different grades took away information they needed from the event that is appropriate for their grade level.
“I want the ninth and 10th graders to have exposure to different schools and understand the variety of options they have for after high school such as going to a four-year college, a trade school, or even entering the military,” Palko explained. “The upperclassmen have an opportunity to talk to representatives about specific majors they have an interest in and can also make inquiries about the size of campuses and class sizes.”
Some upperclassmen who are members of the National Honor Society not only had the opportunity to attend the event but also volunteered to help Palko facilitate the event.
Celeste Orchard and Courtney Petrilak were two of the NHS volunteers at the event. Celeste, a junior who aspires to study actuarial science, explained how the NHS members were helping to hand out and collect scavenger hunt papers to the students in attendance at the fair. These papers were meant to help students gather information about the colleges in attendance. Both Celeste and Courtney discussed how they felt happy to help out at the event, and they also used their time to find out information about a variety of colleges.
“It was good to find out about different opportunities,” Courtney, a junior who wishes to become a physician’s assistant, said.
