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Spring Trip Q&A from YES Prep SE Junior Adrian Turcios

April 09, 2010 by Monique Calderon

About a month has passed since YES Prep juniors have returned from the annual spring trip. Each year, high school students set out on a week long journey to tour various colleges and universities. The junior spring trip is a particularly unique experience because these students get to travel on a plane to various regions of the country where they can gain further exposure to the wealth of higher education opportunities that exist. This year, YES Prep enhanced this experience with a cross-campus junior spring trip that combined students from our Southeast, North Central and Southwest campuses.

This truly unique opportunity provides juniors with more spring trip locations to choose from and allowed from across the system students to interact with an entirely new groups of students. The following is a Q&A session with Adrian Turcios, a junior at Southeast who has taken some time to reflect upon his spring trip experience and what it means as he continues to prepare for college.

1. What trip did you attend for spring trip this year? How did you feel when you first found out where you were going?

I attended the Atlanta spring trip this year and I am ashamed to say that when I first received the news, I was pretty devastated because I wanted to attend the Florida trip. I had already visited Atlanta during a 6^th grade trip at YES and I thought the city did not have much more to offer me.

2. This year, junior spring trip was a cross-campus experience. Were you nervous about interacting with students from other campuses? Why or why not?

I wasn’t nervous about interacting with students from North Central and Southwest, I just didn’t want to do it because it meant that I had to step out of my comfort zone. I wanted to spend my last spring trip with just my friends, but it was fun anyway.

3. Did your initial opinion about your spring trip location or the cross-campus experience change while you were on the trip? How so?

It changed completely from negative to positive. My attitude turned made a 180 degree turn. The trip turned out to be a blast with all of the students and teachers.

4. What schools did you get to visit during your trip?

I got to visit amazing schools like University of Georgia, Georgia Tech, Oglethorpe University, Emory University, Georgia State University and Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) – Atlanta.

5. Of the schools you toured, which one do you think was the best fit for you?

The school that was the best fit for me was Georgia Tech because I want to major in architecture and this would be a great school to start that off with. I want to specialize in landscape architecture and this school has a great college for it.

6. Was there a school that caught you by surprise?

The school that caught me by surprise was the University of Georgia. On our first night in Georgia, we visited UGA to participate in some icebreaker activities. I thought it looked old and rundown and pretty scary. When we visited campus the next morning, I saw that it was a pretty amazing school with great facilities and colleges.

7. What was your favorite social activity while on spring trip?

My favorite social activities were touring the CNN Center, visiting Coca-Coca museum and, of course, roller skating at Cascade! Overall, that day was fantastic and I will remember it always because it was so much fun.

8. What will be your best memory of this year’s spring trip?

I will always remember spending some quality time with teachers and friends at the restaurants and while riding in the van. We were able to connect real nicely outside of the classroom and outside of the state of Texas!

9. How do you think the junior spring trip has prepared you for college admissions next fall?

I will know what colleges/universities have the (academic) requirements I have met. I will feel more comfortable talking to a college counselor because they know what it was like on the Atlanta trip or any other spring trip. They know what colleges we have seen and we can work together to find the right school for me.

Adrian Turcios is a proud Wizard at YES Prep Southeast. He loves soccer and plays forward and midfield for the men’s Varsity soccer team. Adrian wants to major in architecture and hopes to attend the University of Georgia.

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