By Chloe Futrell, Features Editor
It’s Monday morning, the first day of school, and students begin to flood the building. Sophie Shaw steps out of her new and somewhat empty office. Thinking back to her own high school years at a small charter school in central North Carolina, Shaw is taken aback by the busy hallways filled with students.
“Oh my gosh there are so many students here,” Shaw said. “A couple of students were asking me to help them with their lockers and I was like, ‘I’ve actually never used a locker before, but I will try!’”
Shaw is the newest addition to First Flight’s counseling center, filling Seth Rose’s previous role as college adviser. A recent graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Shaw received an email last year about the position through UNC’s College Advising Corps.
“The hiring process is kind of interesting,” Shaw said. “It is a little bit like speed dating where they have this interview that takes up an entire afternoon. All the different representatives from the different schools that are interested in having a college adviser come to Chapel Hill and then all of the applicants to the position come.”
After an entire afternoon of interviews, Shaw rated her top schools, and school representatives rated their top applicants. Her desire for a change of scenery and the insight she received from Rose sparked her interest in First Flight.
In June, Shaw headed to the Outer Banks with Rose so she could explore First Flight.
“I got to see how he interacted with students and he kind of just took us around the building and around the area, so I did get to see a little bit of him in action,” Shaw said.
As Shaw settles into her new position, she is excited about helping the students who want to come into her office to talk about college.
“I understand sort of being intimidated by dropping into someone’s office, because I probably wouldn’t have done that as a high school student,” Shaw said. “But just know that when you come in here you don’t have to have a plan.”
Shaw is also looking forward to making the college experience an option for all students. Equal opportunity for all students is something she is passionate about.
“I started thinking about how there is a lot of different types of inequality that you can be interested in trying to alleviate,” Shaw said. “It became clear to me that education is something that’s really important to me.”
To Shaw, helping students find their perfect college fit is a top priority
“I want to help students that know they want to go to college and find a college that they will really thrive at,” Shaw said. “It’s one thing to get into college, but it is another thing to get in and actually stay and graduate. It’s terrible if you are in school for a few years and you rack up all these loans and then you end up dropping out because it’s not a great fit for you.”
From freshmen starting to plan their future to seniors looking for help with college applications, Shaw’s door is always open.
“I definitely want underclassmen to come in and chat about long-term things because you can start preparing as an underclassmen,” Shaw said.
Shaw is ready to take on the year and ready for students to stop by her office in the counseling center with any questions. She is available Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Students are encouraged to schedule appointments by visiting the counseling center or contacting Shaw at [email protected]. She is also leading college essay-writing workshops on Mondays after school in her office.
Junior Chloe Futrell can be reached at [email protected].
