For people at PHS, Piedmont may be the only home they have ever known. For senior Victoria Vanderhaden, Piedmont is the thirteenth home, or rather place of residency, she has had to adjust to. Vanderhaden is one of the approximately 35 new students attending PHS.

“You know Mean Girls, how Cady Heron ate lunch in the bathroom?” Vanderhaden said. “I totally did that at my last school, just for one day. I actually made a friend in the bathroom.”

Fortunately for Vanderhaden, she has not had to do so at PHS.

Vanderhaden moved from Kingston, Washington, and currently lives in San Francisco.

“In Kingston, that was my longest stay,” Vanderhaden said. “I was there for three years and was at the same high school. That actually kind of felt like home.”

Because her father is in the Coast Guard, moving is part of Vanderhaden’s lifestyle. Vanderhaden has lived in nine states and has traveled to every state except Alaska.

“It’s something that’s made me who I am,”  Vanderhaden said. “I couldn’t imagine not living this lifestyle. I can definitely visit and know people in a lot of places.”

While he has not moved nearly as much as Vanderhaden, coming to Piedmont makes it junior Joshua Martin’s fourth move. When he left Tennessee, he did not know anything about Piedmont and has since taken time to research California in general.

“[Piedmont’s] a pretty good place,” Martin said. “I like the trees, the outdoor feel to the campus.”

While Vanderhaden and Martin both transferred from out-of-state, other new students are from around the area.

Sophomore Camille Selna has always lived in Piedmont, but used to attend Bishop O’Dowd. Both her older sister and younger brother attend Piedmont schools. She transferred to PHS because her parents wanted her closer to home.

“I was fine with [transferring] because I knew a lot of people, so it wasn’t really a big deal,” Selna said. “I still see my old friends so it’s cool.”

Martin said transferring to a new school was not as difficult as he had imagined and became easier after the first few days.

“The schedule is much weirder and there’s not that many kids,” Martin said. “Not much of a difference, just not as many people to interact with.”

Vanderhaden agreed that it has not been too difficult to adjust to a new school.

“There are no cliques here and everyone’s pretty open,” Vanderhaden said. “Also, everyone says ‘hella.’”

However, senior Ilona Bodnar, who moved to Piedmont from Virginia last year, found it a little more difficult to adjust to the new school and community. Since most people at Piedmont have known each other their whole lives, Bodnar felt like she could not “interrupt” people’s friend groups.

“It’s like if you’re with them, they’re super nice, but you’re not one of those people who’ve been there with them for a while,” Bodnar said.

About five years ago, math teacher John Hayden began an informal program to aid new students in the transition process. He hosted gatherings and received funding to have catered lunches for the students. The program lasted for a year.

“The goal was to get them to see who else was new to the school and give them an opportunity to meet me and hopefully find at least one adult they felt comfortable with,” Hayden said. “The group was designed to become obsolete once the new kids felt like they’d transitioned.”

Hayden’s repeated experiences of being new led him to take this initiative. From first to fourth grade, Hayden lived in Central California. Because his father worked in the produce business, every winter they would move down to Southern California for a few months, then return home.

“I was constantly transitioning and experiencing being a new kid, even when I came back up here it was still a transition,” Hayden said. “Fortunately after a couple of years, my friends still remembered me. I’ve always felt a special place in my heart for people who have to go through that, who are trying to get into a new situation.”

Bodnar experienced being new as junior, which she said made the notoriously difficult year ten times harder.

“I was really close to my friends at my old school and each one was really excellent in whatever they did, so they could help me when I needed it,” Bodnar said. “Whereas here, I couldn’t reach out to anybody because I didn’t know anybody. If I was struggling in something, I was just kind of like, ‘Okay, suck it up, move on.’”

At her old school, Bodnar had been involved in a lot of clubs, many of which do not exist at PHS.

“A lot of the classes I was taking or planning to take also didn’t exist here,” Bodnar said. “I had to find the basics of what I really liked and go for it.”

Over time Bodnar began to connect with more students and teachers. Still not knowing half the people in her grade gives her the opportunity to meet new people every day.

“I’m happy where I am,” Bodnar said. “I try to focus on the positive.”

Because Vanderhaden has moved so much, she has experienced all different ways people handle and perceive high school.

Contrasting to her old school, Vanderhaden said everyone at PHS places high priorities on academics.

“People really care and want to go to a university here and I think that’s really cool,” Vanderhaden said.

Because they come from different communities and environments, new kids always bring new ideas, Hayden said.

“You can’t take the whole school on field trips around the world, so [having new kids] is an easier way to bring in an outside perspective,” Hayden said.

Bodnar recommends that new kids reach out to as many people as possible.

“I don’t know why I was so scared to talk to people,” Bodnar said. “They’re super nice, and just because they’ve had friends for a long time doesn’t mean you can’t be friends. Also, do the things you like. If you do the things you like it’ll be fine.”