Marlena Childs is a sophomore at WHS and is swimming as her fall sport. She attended New London High School Multi-Magnet Campus for her freshman year and returned to Waterford Public Schools for her sophomore year.
The NLHS basketball coach, Coach Millsaps, was her coach since sixth grade so that influenced her decision to switch schools because she is one of the best coaches around here.
The transition from CLMS to NLHS Multi-Magnet Campus was easier because she knew the other students from when she went to elementary school.
Although Marlena knew some students, NLHS Multi-Magnet Campus had a larger student body than CLMS, and she would still have trouble making new friends. However, since her dad works in the district at Bennie Dover Middle School, she felt more comfortable connecting with them because they liked him as a teacher, so it was a good conversation starter.
During the winter season at NLHS Multi-Magnet Campus, she had her schedule set and organized. She would come into school and be ready for 6:15 am to have morning shooting practice with the team. The school day was the same as WHS although it started late, had similar block and lunch wave schedules. On Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, school would end at 2:44 pm, and on Wednesdays, school ended at 2:04.
Since she had basketball practice after school, she went to her coach’s classroom and had a two-hour strict study hall with no phones before practice because athletes weren’t allowed to leave. Marlena had basketball practice for two hours, then weight lifts. Before everyone got dismissed to go home, they would have ice baths, and then her day would be over around 8:00 pm.
Childs says “I enjoyed the busy schedule and how it ran smoothly.”
Switching sports while moving to a different school district was another major change for her. At NLHS, she played soccer in the fall.
Childs said, “It was a good team and a good environment because the team was at a lower level [than WHS] so I didn’t feel as much pressure, but I enjoyed it and had fun.”
The biggest shock for Marlena was the cultural differences between CLMS, NLHS, and WHS.
She said… “The vibe is different. In New London, they are social and outgoing but here there are more cliques. It’s not a negative difference, just a difference I have to get used to.”
She knew that she would have to do more school work at WHS, and she also wouldn’t be able to see her New London friends anymore. But the hardest part of switching from NLHS Multi-Magnet Campus to Waterford overall, from sports to school, was the diversity.
That was the main reason she decided to go to NLHS Multi-Magnet Campus after Clark Lane Middle School was because the school population was more diverse.
She said “People in NLHS were mostly of color and different backgrounds and when I came to Waterford, everyone had the same background and looked the same.”
Having less diversity in the Waterford High School didn’t have an impact on her. She explained, “It is definitely different within the social circles. There isn’t much diversity on a personal level. It is an adjustment I have to make that I have made before. I can make it a negative adjustment but also I can choose to make it a positive adjustment instead.”
She always aims to be more optimistic with change because it makes it easier for her to adapt.
Marlena lives with her parents and three siblings and is the youngest in her family. All her siblings graduated from WHS, including 2024 graduate Elliot Childs. Marlena and her parents thought she would get a better education at WHS because of the high quality of the teaching faculty.
During this fall season at WHS, her daily schedule is a little more relaxed. After school, she has swimming practice from 3:00 to 5:00 pm and then goes home for the day.
When she originally transferred to Waterford Schools, she wasn’t going to join a fall sport. Specifically, she wasn’t going to join soccer because the WHS team was in a more competitive division, so she worried there would be more pressure and less of the fun and enjoyment part of the team. This fall, she decided to join the WHS swim team because she has been on a swim club team for most of her life.
One of the pulling factors to come back to WHS was that she didn’t plan to play basketball anymore. She said “I didn’t find joy in playing the sport anymore.”
The biggest difference she noticed coming back to WHS is that she has more school work here because she had a lot of long-term subs last year at NLHS Multi-Magnet Campus.
One piece of advice Marlena would give to someone switching schools is to try to be open-minded.
She said, “Each school has its differences and you will always have to go through changes, but in the end, there will always be a couple of positive things.”
Marlena is very happy to be back in Waterford Schools for her sophomore year of high school and is ready to be pushed by the exceptional quality of Waterford’s sports and academics.