Seniors will part this fall for schools and universities all over the country, but with communication resources all around them, going off to college is no reason not to stay connected.
“The Senior Class already has a connection that can be continued,” Senior Principal Carl Hudson said. “The availability of that connection is going to be great for them to stay in touch.”
Ravi Kasinadhuni, senior, will be attending the Georgia Institute of Technology next year and said he has close friends that will be attending different colleges far away from him.
“I think Facebook makes [keeping in touch] much more possible,” Kasinadhuni said. “There are kids that have moved away over the years that I still talk to because of Facebook.”
Kasinadhuni said with resources like Facebook, Skype and other forms of technology available, it doesn’t matter whether students are attending the same college or in two different countries.
“The communication barrier is completely removed,” Kasinadhuni said.
Kasinadhuni said social networking and technological advances are both good and bad.
“It’s kind of weird because it’s good for the communication aspect because people will be able to communicate a lot, but at the same time it’s not on a very personal level,” Kasinadhuni said. “You’re not gaining the same experience as talking face to face or hanging out.”
Kayla Winking, senior, will be attending the University of Missouri-Columbia in the fall and said she has many friends who will be going out of state for college.
“Hopefully we can still keep in touch through Facebook and Skype,” Winking said.
Winking said she prefers Skype over other communication techniques.
“You can actually see them on Skype and get a better sense of actually being with them,” Winking said.
Winking said her generation is definitely more connected than past generations because of social networking and technology.
“I don’t know how people kept in touch before,” Winking said. “Now you can be instantly connected.”
Vicki Kemp, gifted resource teacher, said she hasn’t kept in touch with very many former classmates. She still hears from one best friend from elementary school, one friend from junior high and a couple friends from college that she reconnected with through Facebook.
“My adult friends are ones I’ve made after college through shared interests,” Kemp said.
Kemp said it’s hard to say whether she would’ve appreciated the benefits of social networking or Skype while in high school and college, but said she can see how students engaged in these communication resources today are better connected.
“I didn’t miss it because I didn’t have it,” Kemp said. “When I wanted to keep in touch with someone it was either a letter or a long distance phone call and who can afford that?”
While Hudson said social networking and other forms of technological communication are beneficial to students staying connected with old friends, he also advises seniors to make new friends.
“There are so many opportunities for students to meet all kinds of people from different states,” Hudson said. “I invited friends home to St. Louis and visited their hometowns as well. It’s a great opportunity.”