Starting a new school year is always stressful, whether you’re a senior going to the same school you have all four years or an incoming freshman, especially moving to a different country to study for your senior year. For Junior Alessandro Ghiretti from Italy, this is the case. Ghiretti is almost 17, and should be a senior but because he is studying abroad he got pushed back a year. When asked what his first thoughts of Leonardtown High School were he simply said “Wow. My school at home is one of the biggest in Italy and it is no where the size of Leonardtown High.”

There are many differences between the two countries, one being that at Leonardtown High we go to a classroom for forty-five minutes and then go to a different classroom, students are in school for about eight hours Monday – Friday; while in Italy they stay in one classroom all day, study for four-five hours Monday-Saturday. Ghiretti says he likes it better here. Of course he said the food is better in Italy, but he said that people were friendlier here, where as they are shy in Italy. If you see a new face in the halls don’t be afraid to say hi, it could make someone’s day or even just make it so they have a better time while in our country.