1. Know Your Restrooms

The night before my first day, I studied the La Joya campus map for a solid 25 minutes, trying to correlate the restrooms to my classes.

It’s a big school, there’s at least one restroom for every two buildings, I should be fine right?

WRONG.

If you do not know which restrooms are open during your class, then you will be left wandering around campus hoping the next restroom door you try to open is unlocked. There’s also the chance that security will escort you to one.

Either option is not fun.

2. It looks like a fight will break out at any moment. Don’t worry, every one just talks really loud.

The first time I saw a ‘fight’ brewing was on my way to 5th period. A crowd seemed to be gathering around and there wasn’t a staff member to be seen.

Could this be? Would this be the day I witnessed a real actual fight? Would I finally be able to shout WORLD STAR?

Also wrong.

In less than 40 seconds the crowd dissipated and the potential brawlers bro-hugged and separated to go to class, and I was left feeling confused and faintly disappointed.

My advice is to just mind ya business and make your way to class as usual, because if a fight actually does break out, you probably don’t want to be caught in it anyway.

3. No Starbucks??????

I was EXTREMELY disappointed to find that I couldn’t bring my coffee, or any other outside non-water drink on campus. I still am disappointed.

I low key kind of wish I didn’t know about this rule, but alas, I do, and alas, no coffee on campus for me. 🙁

4. Sweep is very much a thing.

My second week of school here, the word “sweep” was the only word on everyone’s lips. I was so confused, I didn’t know what sweep was, but I was immediately alarmed.

I imagined that it was something like security making you sweep the rocks off the sidewalk into the landscape or something, which made more sense than what sweep actually is.

Sweep is when you are swept off to a room where you do nothing for the remainder of the class you were late to.

I think the whole of the student body can agree that sweep is paradoxical. Miss 5 minutes of class, and as a punishment, you miss all of it.

But that’s just my opinion, I don’t make the rules, I just follow them.

5. Don’t worry about not knowing anyone, chances are no one really knows each other either.

My biggest fear was transferring to a new school and not knowing anyone. I was never really that great at making friends, So I worried I would just be that odd one out in a senior class that had spent the previous 3 years together.

To my relief (and slight offense), no one even noticed I was a new transfer. Although a good number of students knew each other, I noticed that more students were strangers to each other than friends.

I was also pretty lucky to move schools with my best friend, so I wasn’t completely alone, but nonetheless, I made new friends rather quickly. Being in a bigger school meant more students which meant more possibilities for new friends. After all, the more the merrier, right?

I hope this helps anyone that was or may be in my same situation. Feel free to comment anything that you would add to this list!