On Thursday, Jan. 5, prospective Hinsdale Central students gained insight into high school life at the Eighth Grade Family Night event. As feeder school eighth graders are moving into their second semester of the year, they have started to think about their upcoming next four years in a new environment. Families with eighth graders enrolled at Hinsdale Middle School, Clarendon Hills Middle School, Butler, Westview, and Gower were all invited to Hinsdale Central High School to attend. 

The night started at 5:15 p.m. with the activities fair. Here, the future devils were introduced to the numerous clubs and sports that the school has to offer ranging from Women in Engineering to the Bowling Team. 

Students and faculty representing different teams and clubs stood at their designated tables and offered information to the eighth graders. Eighth graders were able to discuss with club/sport members, receive pamphlets, and ultimately get a sense for what extracurricular activities they may be interested in. 

“I’m interested in joining the art club, book club, speech, photography club, and choir,” said Laura Huber, eighth grader. 

After the fair, students and their parents made their way into the auditorium for an informational session which debriefed course selection and discussed all the opportunities offered at Hinsdale Central. 

“This night made me nervous but excited for high school to start because you are given a lot more opportunities to choose what classes you want to take,” said Anna Ursillo, eighth grader. 

This was followed by a walk through the hallways of the school to familiarize families with all the departments. Teachers and students spoke about their experiences, the curriculum, and offered suggestions for course selection.

“My job was to stay in the classroom and encourage the kids to take engineering classes and I answered their questions about it,” said Kyle Doorhy, senior. 

For more information about course selection, eighth graders can go to this link for the 2023-2024 program of studies.