On September 26, the parents of West Orange High School students were able to come and undergo the daily life of their teens. Back to School Night was a success as parents went to classes and met with the teachers to experience the learning environment here at the high school. 

Things ran smoothly and most teachers were delighted to meet and converse with parents of their students. Ms. Feehan, a psychology teacher here at West Orange High School says that “it was great to meet the parents and guardians last week at Back to School Night.”

“It is important to establish a relationship with the parents early on in the year and Back to School offers you that opportunity,” Ms. Feehan noted, “They will often tell you something about their child that you do not know from class” 

Teachers weren’t the only ones returning to school that night. Students also volunteered to help guide parents, sell school spirit merchandise and baked goods throughout the night. 

There was quite a bit of excitement as parents and guardians coasted through the halls looking for classrooms, yet the Mountaineer Mentors helped out a ton by pointing them in the right directions. The action didn’t stop there either! In the halls, one of West Orange’s small learning communities, Institute for Empowerment (I.C.E), held a bake sale while competing with the school store for the attention of the Mountaineer parents. 

Fierce competition arose between the two student bodies in the sales of baked goods and school spirit. As I.C.E shouted out to parents in the crowd,  “Everything is one dollar!” , the school store representatives responded, “Get your Mountaineer merchandise!” 

When Back to School Night came to the end, even Mr. Moore could be seen in a frenzy of excitement as he raced two seniors to the Conforti Building exit of West Orange High.

It is needless to say that this year’s Back to School Night was a success as teachers, students, and parents all gathered together for a fun start to the school year.