During tough times, the Bruin community has been shown time and again to step up to help one another. The importance of community at Bear River can not be understated.
Our school has so many opportunities for Bruins to get together. Whether it be participating in a spirit week with the usual ending rally, or going to sports games and watching your fellow students compete, we stay connected. Even the teachers and office administrators do their best in creating a better Bruin community.
Counselor KC Wachs-Worden highlighted how the staff work together to help all students meet their goals.
“Every kid that comes here is important and valuable, and we care about our kids. It’s not just a job or just another student, we want to get to know every single kid and know who they are,” Wachs-Worden said. “We want them to have a positive high school experience. We want to find out what their passion is and help them realize it. I think it’s just important, because we’re small, we have the privilege to get to know the kids. And really support them along their path and their journey.”
Many students agreed with Wachs-Worden, and thought that the community had immense value at our school.
Senior Aden Mattson discussed how necessary it is for students to have a place that they can be comfortable.
“Community is important because it builds a feeling of belonging,” Mattson said. “It creates a safe place where people can feel comfortable being who they are.”
Senior Jake Vogt agreed, highlighting how good relations with everyone on campus were key.
“Community is important because it allows us students to feel more comfortable going to school, rather than despise showing up every day,” Vogt relayed. “It’s ince to know you have a bunch of people to lean back on when you’re struggling.”
Wachs-Worden further detailed how staff go the extra mile to create connections between everyone in the Bruin community.
“We have that where sometimes kids will come in and they’ll be new or lost, the first thing I always ask kids is what are you into because we have something for everybody here. And then finding that niche and helping connect them with what that is. If it’s Magic, The Gathering we have a room for that, if it’s video games we have a place they can go for that. If it’s leadership or sports, we have that. It’s connecting them,” Wachs-Worden said. “I think the difference between Bear River and other schools is that we will take the next, personal step. We’ll help them contact the coach and go out of way to say ‘so-and-so wants to play’ or can I send them to you, so we’re actually helping create that connection when students might feel shy. Connect them, not just send them on their way.”
Similar ideas were echoed by Senior Alicia Anderson, who thought the Bruin community acted as an extra line of structural integrity.
“Community at BR helps us have another support system that really helps out,” said Anderson.
