Saturdays are a break from school and work, but Jan. 24 saw teachers and students alike setting up for the 2020 Clark Expo. There was a lot of work to be done as they opened the doors to potential freshmen and their families. 

“I was helping the mock trial with their booth,” said Clark junior Damien Knight. “It was pretty cool. I enjoy talking to impressionable freshmen.” Knight said that he and the other Mock Trial students spent the Expo pitching the class to possible freshmen and trying to find sponsors. “I enjoyed [the Expo] when I was a freshman. I think it’s nice to show what you can do at the school and see all the classes and clubs.” 

The majority of tables were on the top floor, set up outside of classrooms with their doors propped open to welcome visitors. The most popular classes were Mock Trial and Spanish which attracted groups of people in front of cybrary and caused traffic.  

The lower floor was less crowded, but still had its fair share of tables and curious eyes. Clark students created a welcoming environment for newcomers, inviting them to their table to talk and walking families around on tours. Food wasn’t short on supply as others walked around selling churros, donuts and pizza.  

The teachers were also in the classrooms as the different departments teamed up to display their curriculum and answer parent questions. The classrooms and hallways displayed student work and art for all to see. 

The new Animation teacher, Laurie Siqueido, described her first Clark Expo as “excellent.” “I was impressed and surprised by the number of parents that attended and the enthusiasm of the parents and that the parents had such a good impression of Clark,” Siqeuido said. “There were more parents than kids coming and looking in all the classrooms, and the parents had incredibly great insightful questions, and it was a lot of fun answering them.” 

Young people from middle schools all over Glendale and La Crescenta to see a possible high school, some of whom weren’t even eighth graders. They wandered the halls with family or friends as they took it all in. Some students were happy to be there, others reluctant. “There’s two types of freshmen,” said Knight. “The active and inactive.” Active students would march up to tables and people without prompting from parents. Meanwhile, inactive ones were being dragged along by a parent and forced to participate.

Some current middle school students said they were impressed by what they saw at the Expo, and expressed interested in submitting an application to Clark. “I thought it was really cool. I didn’t know there was this many classes that you can take,” said Toll Middle School student Maya Chrystie. “I thought [Clark] was really big and I’m thinking of coming here for ninth grade.”