Fellows Faves: Start of the Year
Every year, 12 Plus brings together a cohort of passionate young professionals to serve on the frontlines of our mission— these are the 12 Plus Fellows.
We’re excited to the share the first post of this year’s Fellows Blog entitled “Fellows Faves,” featuring Celeste Bloom and Ridhika Tripathee.
Meet Celeste:
Hey everyone! Welcome to Fellows Faves, where we, the fellows, talk about our favorite parts of the fellowship so far. I'm Celeste Bloom. I work at Eastside High School in Camden.
Meet Ridhika:
And I'm Ridhika Tripathee, and I work at Camden High Campus, where we work with three schools: Brimm Medical Arts, BPLA (Big Picture Learning Academy), and Camden High.
Listen the rest of their podcast episode here
The full transcript of this episode and additional photos can be found below.
Celeste Bloom: My summer was kind of packed. I started by graduating college, and that was, like in June. And then immediately after that, I moved to Philly. And so I didn't do, like that many fun things, because I was just moving and getting settled. But I also worked at a pre K but I was [00:01:00] glad to be moving on to something else when the fall started. What about you?
Ridhika Tripathee: Yeah, that's fun. Before joining 12+, and over the summer too, I was living and working in Madrid, Spain for a couple years. So when I did move, I was navigating like a new job and a new city at the same time, which is a challenge, but also rewarding eventually, like in the end.
Celeste Bloom: That's cool. So after the summer, what were your first days at 12+ like? So I know we had training which was at HQ and then what were your first days like at your site school?
Ridhika Tripathee: So training in itself I thought was great. Even though the days were pretty long and there was so much information, I really appreciated the information that we were being given and taught about and I think it was way more comprehensive than I had initially thought a job would provide us with.
The Camden Team during summer training
And the first couple of days [00:02:00] of school were kind of low key so it was an interesting transition from something being so jam packed to then really calm but it was nice to also just like chill.
Celeste Bloom: Yeah. How did you feel meeting every fellow for the first time?
Ridhika Tripathee: Mmm. I I was really excited. I remember like the very first moment I stepped into the office. I was so nervous [laughs].
Celeste Bloom: Me too! Oh my gosh.
Ridhika Tripathee: I was like, "oh my god, who are all these people?" And we were all sitting around a table. And I was actually like a couple of minutes late because I was navigating the subway system. And I was like "ahhhh" but then we started talking and it was so nice. Yeah, did you feel the same way?
Celeste Bloom: Yeah, I was really nervous. I remember sitting around that table and we had to do introductions. And we had to do- we we did a slideshow remember like we all added a slide. And I remember that for some reason I didn't see Bri's (Fellowship Director) email [00:03:00] so I actually hadn't sent my slide in until the morning of. Like I got there and I was like "Oh my gosh." So I sent it because it was fine [laughs]. I was like panicking, but it was literally fine.
Ridhika Tripathee: Did someone tell you about the slideshow?
Celeste Bloom: I think like I saw- like I, I got there and I opened up my laptop and then I saw the email about the slide from a couple days ago or something. But I sent it in and Bri was like, "don't worry about it at all." And then it went up as if I'd done it on time. But I remember being really nervous about that because I was like what if it's not there and then I just have to like get up and be like, "Oh, sorry, it was late." But yeah, so that worked out, but yeah, we all had our moments.
Ridhika Tripathee: Yeah, of course. And I thought it was also really nice that it wasn't just the fellows on the slideshow. It was everyone in the company. And so you could get to know things about everyone and felt more like a community even immediately into the first day of the job.
Celeste Bloom: Yeah, a lot of people talked about their [00:04:00] cats and dogs.
Ridhika Tripathee: Yeah [laughs].
Celeste Bloom: I definitely remember that.
Ridhika Tripathee: So, for your site school, how was the first couple of days there?
Celeste Bloom: Yeah, so our site is kind of interesting because right now we're in a swing space where the original school is being, like, knocked down and we're getting a completely new building and in between that time we're at this elementary school called the Kramer School that has been refurbished to be a high school.
I remember they were literally, like renovating it in the beginning, they were taking out the, like, kids toilets and putting in adult toilets. But so for the first couple days, like you, it was definitely quieter, because we get there before students get there. So we have several days to, like prep, get the center all nice, do decorations, preliminary senior wall stuff. But we didn't get to do all of that because we didn't have a room yet because our room and the spaces for every teacher [00:05:00] were quite up in the air at that point. So we were actually in the FOC's (Family Operations Coordinator) office and we were working out of there and we even started some of our advising there too, like students would come to that room when they needed stuff.
Eastside High School’s team on the first day
The start of our PLUS Center renovation
But I think what helped us when school started and this is what I like about Camden is that we can go into senior seminars because if we didn't have that and we didn't have a room like it would be really difficult to advise. But so I really liked being able to go into senior seminars, see every kid not just the kids who are super enthusiastic about 12+ but just like in general.
And it was hard in the beginning, not having a room, but every teacher wasn't sure where they were going to be, so I felt like I was in the same boat with a lot of other people, and I got the main culture of Eastside, that like, "okay, we're all in this together, and we're going to work through it." And so I saw how the community came together over [00:06:00] that and so that was good, that was a good introduction, I think.
Ridhika Tripathee: Right, right. It really bonds people when you're all going through something that's challenging. And it's interesting you mentioned the senior seminars and how that's different in Camden. I initially was thinking about how it's a bit difficult because you have to approach students that are just sitting there instead of them approaching you. But, when you don't have a PLUS center to be in, It's definitely an advantage.
Celeste Bloom: Yeah, for sure.
Ridhika Tripathee: So what was your favorite thing about working at your site in the beginning of the year? And would you say it's your favorite thing still? Or is it something new and why?
Celeste Bloom: So my favorite thing was working with the students, and it still is. I feel like that's changed over time especially because in the beginning we didn't really know each other. I was kind of like butting into their conversations in class or just like whatever else they were doing. But now every time I do a check in, it's not just about getting things done it's also just generally [00:07:00] how's life going? How's your family like checking in in general? and yeah, you get to like see their personalities over time, like the funny things, like they get way more unfiltered with you over time, like they feel comfortable complaining and like dishing out the tea.
Ridhika Tripathee: And sometimes like you probably shouldn't be saying this stuff in front of me.
Celeste Bloom: Yeah, yeah. It's like, "oh, let's stop that." Um, and I think also now we're getting into the thick of it in terms of like acceptances, figuring out financial aid packages big decisions to make. So I feel kind of grateful that we've had all this time to build a relationship.
Now, some of them are even asking me like, what should I do? Which school should I choose? And I'm like, that's your decision. But, um, definitely already having that bond so that they'll lean on you and they will definitely like trust your advice.
What about you? What was [00:08:00] your favorite thing working at your site at the beginning and is it still now?
Ridhika Tripathee: Yeah I mean similarly to you I would say it was getting to know the students and learning more about their goals and aspirations and their personalities. And I remember I was a bit nervous in the beginning about knowing and remembering all their names but then that was easily resolved as I got to spend more time with them I would say yeah still now I enjoy getting to know them.
Camden High Campus’ team on the first day
A packed Camden High Campus PLUS Center
And something else that's maybe become my favorite thing or is up there is I've found that I really enjoy solving these problems that come up because there are so many problems that come up every day [laughs]. So it is like really satisfying brainstorming solutions. Even when the solution isn't so easy, and it takes a long time to get there. It's really fulfilling for me to finally figure something out.
Celeste Bloom: One thing that like surprised me actually was how much students notice, even though, cause in the [00:09:00] beginning, like they act like they don't care, right? They don't pay attention to you. You're just like some person at the back of the class. But one day this student was like, " you haven't talked to me in a while, like you've talked to everyone else in the class but me." And like I think it had just happened that I was focusing on some other students because the re were pressing things with applications. But she was like, "yeah, like you haven't come to me in a while" which is funny because in class she was on her phone sometimes. I didn't think she was paying attention to that, but since then I've noticed, like, students notice every small little detail. You think they're not paying attention, but they, they definitely care.
Ridhika Tripathee: Yeah, or if, someone's, like, not there, who usually is there, and they're, like, "where is that person?" Yeah, yeah, they definitely do notice.
Celeste Bloom: So we've talked about challenges and also rewarding things that happen at sites, but in terms of comfort [00:10:00] what was something that you felt confident about when entering your site right away? And what was something that took getting used to?
Ridhika Tripathee: So I did have a lot of prior experiences with mentoring. And so that was one of the main reasons I wanted to do this job. It was really nice to continue doing that with these students. Every positive interaction really helped me build confidence even more.
But something that was difficult to get used to were the amount of fights that happened. It's something that I didn't really experience in my high school, so it was different. Also, just seeing students that I'd gotten close with getting into fights. And, you know, sometimes you can say, like, "What are you doing?" other times it's just like man, I just wish that hadn't happened. And it is something that I can't control, which is a factor in why it's difficult to get used to. What about [00:11:00] you?
Celeste Bloom: Yeah, fights never really happened at my school either. I meant like at high school. It wasn't really something that happened and then here at Eastside yeah, there's fights. And sometimes it's like our calmest students to like it's kind of surprising. That was definitely a learning point in terms of like what we can control in the PLUS Center and what we can't control everything that happens outside.
Especially in like other grades because we mostly just work with seniors and so many of the fights are happening between the underclassmen and so you really have no control there.
What else made me feel comfortable right away? So I think like you it was the advising but I actually didn't have a lot of formal advising experience with high schoolers at all.
Ridhika Tripathee: It was mostly like elementary schoolers?
Celeste Bloom: I did the [00:12:00] elementary school stuff. I also I worked with first semester freshmen in college, which honestly are the same as high school seniors for real.
Ridhika Tripathee: Yeah no, definitely.
Celeste Bloom: But I didn't have experience with that age group specifically. So I remember at first I was really nervous about it, and then I got into my first advising session, and when I wasn't like overthinking it anymore, and I was actually able to just get into it, a lot of my answers felt natural. Even when we were doing the role playing advising [during fellows training] and I was really grateful for that too, because I was pretty nervous about it, but once I actually got into it, and it was just like a conversation at the end of the day.
Ridhika Tripathee: Right, right, like connecting.
Celeste Bloom: Mm hmm, mm hmm.
Ridhika Tripathee: So, we've talked a lot about students and advising, but what would you say is your favorite thing outside of the classroom?
Celeste Bloom: Yeah. For me, we did a lot of field trips in the fall and I felt like that was a great way to meet students [00:13:00] outside of the classroom. We went on field trips to different universities, and then we also went on some like leadership development field trips for student leaders. We went to Jobs for American Graduates [JAG], I think that was my favorite field trip actually. It was hosted at Rider University. It was the most interactive. It wasn't just like info sessions and a tour but they had students do these different like team building activities from different schools, they had to work together because it was like games also, so we would record them.
There was a a team building thing where, they had to pick up these cups by using string that they all held from different angles like a rubber band sort of thing and they had to pick up these cups all together and make them into a pyramid without it falling over. It was like different schools competing against each other.
Ridhika Tripathee: Did you see like anyone completing the pyramid?
Celeste Bloom: Eventually like everyone did but it was like about which school like finished it first. I was [00:14:00] recording a bunch that day for the Instagram as well and it was just really funny because they were almost done and then it toppled over and then they had to restart. But they were really enjoying that and it was just nice to just like see them outside of a classroom environment . And I also got to know like teachers and counselors through that and they would they would tell us about their job experience, and so I enjoyed that.
Ridhika Tripathee: Yeah, and we don't get to interact with too many teachers or counselors that aren't senior seminar teachers. So yeah any opportunity where we do is really nice. And I would say yeah similarly seeing students outside of the classroom and the way they interact outside of the classroom is really interesting.
I would say my favorite thing about or my favorite, like kind of event outside of the classroom would be, performances like we've seen dance performances here, which is really cool, especially cause we have a school that focuses [00:15:00] on creative arts and so seeing them perform is really cool.
And something else that I really enjoy that's not at our site, but is a part of the fellows experience are the funsies! [laughs]
Celeste Bloom: Yeah, funsies! [laughs]
Ridhika Tripathee: The bowling one was really fun.
Celeste Bloom: Mm-hmm .
Ridhika Tripathee: And then when we did the golf one with all of Camden I thought that was really cool. And since, you know, I'm like new to Philly, it's really nice to be able to go to all these different places.
Celeste Bloom: Mm-hmm. Yeah. I was like amazed. I guess I haven't had a real job before this one, but I was amazed that they actually like put money towards fun events! [laughs]
Ridhika Tripathee: Yeah, I know me too!
Celeste Bloom: And they pay for food!
Ridhika Tripathee: I know, I was like, I'm definitely taking advantage of this .
Celeste Bloom: And it is nice cause it's like during PD (Professional Development) we have our fellows process talks, but then I feel like this is another opportunity for process talks in a way, just like sharing [00:16:00] information, decompressing about your site. It's nice because in other jobs people aren't hired on in bulk, like, every year in the same way.
Ridhika Tripathee: Yeah that's true.
Celeste Bloom: It's like, at some jobs, like, you're the only new person for the next, like, year. But at this job we're all hired at the same time. So, we get to talk about that together, we're on the same kind of timeline because of that.
The 2024-2025 Fellows Class
Ridhika Tripathee: And we come from, like very different backgrounds, too.
Celeste Bloom: Yeah, that's so true.
Ridhika Tripathee: Yeah, some people have been working for a long time and some people like you are just out of college and it is really fun to interact with so many different personalities and different people.
Celeste Bloom: Yeah, there's definitely like an age range geographical range people have come from a lot of different places, different like educational experiences, work experiences.
So another favorite moment that we wanted to touch on was highlights of the year, so success stories, and also like the biggest [00:17:00] learning moments, because we've talked about like the fellowship has ups and downs for sure, right? And I think those downs are also growing experiences, but yeah, I share one success story and one learning moment.
Ridhika Tripathee: I mean, this is a success story that I think like I don't have much of a hand in, like I have, you know, some kind of influence, but I do want to shout out one of my students and he got into this school, Columbia, through QuestBridge and I did introduce QuestBridge to him, and I helped him with the application . It was a really cool experience, actually, because I also did QuestBridge in high school, and so, it was a full circle moment where I was able to share this experience with a student, and even if he hadn't gotten in, you know, it would have been a fun experience and fulfilling. But he did match to a school, and so that was even better of an experience, [00:18:00] and I think along that journey of us working on the application, which was really stressful because school starts pretty late in Camden and the application was going to close a week-
Celeste Bloom: Oh my god!
Ridhika Tripathee: after he learned about this. And so we only had a week to send in the application. And you have so many essays to write, you have to do all these different things that he hadn't done yet. And so it was an intense journey, but I got to know a lot about the student and like really bond with him and so that was really a nice experience as well.
Celeste Bloom: Yeah, that's crazy because like I heard for most QuestBridge stuff, you introduce it to them in 11th grade.
Ridhika Tripathee: Right, like you can introduce it in 11th grade, but definitely like over the summer you should be working on it, not a week before it's due. And so that also kind of makes it like "ahhhh" you know a big success story that paid off.
Celeste Bloom: But it's hard when, like, they haven't been told about this opportunity before.
Ridhika Tripathee: Right [00:19:00] right.
Celeste Bloom: I feel like you definitely played, like, a big hand in helping, you know? Especially if you've been through it, like, you told him about it. Those are all big things.
Ridhika Tripathee: [Laughs] Yeah, I was able to share how I went about answering this question or, like, you know, those kind of things, so that was also nice. Yeah, definitely I would say that was like one of my favorite moments when he got in and just the whole journey.
But something that I would say was like a learning moment and something that continues to be a learning moment is practicing my Spanish. With a new language that you learn, it's always a learning moment. I had lived in Madrid, for a couple of years, but still like interacting with people in America who speak Spanish is very different, actually. And so I had to learn different ways of speaking and learn vocabulary that I never would have used [laughs] about FAFSA and stuff.
Celeste Bloom: Oh, yeah. [00:20:00]
Ridhika Tripathee: But I also really do like these moments where I'm pushing myself, to grow and out of my comfort zone and continuously doing that. So I am grateful for this job for providing me that experience, too, and that I'm able to use this skill that I have to positively impact some families’ lives.
Celeste Bloom: Do you feel like your Spanish is getting better? [laughs]
Ridhika Tripathee: [ sighs] I mean, I still, even though I use it for FAFSA nights, I don't use it any other time. Whereas in Spain, I was using it every day. So I feel like it's getting worse unfortunately [laughs]. Like I try to use Duolingo and I try to do a lesson every day, but still being in an immersive setting cannot be beat.
Celeste Bloom: Maybe it's getting better in one specific area.
Ridhika Tripathee: Yeah.
Celeste Bloom: You know how to say [laughs] provisionally independent-
Ridhika Tripathee: [Laughs] or like how did you file your taxes last year?
Celeste Bloom: Yeah [laughs].
Ridhika Tripathee: Or whatever [00:21:00] [laughs]. Yeah so what would you say were some of your favorite moments or learning moments?
Celeste Bloom: Yeah, I think for me I was an English major and I've always really cared about writing. And I'm actually trying to do like this literary magazine right now- well, I'm not trying to do I am working on this literary magazine where I'm collecting student work from different sites. Any creative writing, poetry, personal essay, stuff like that but, so that's always been very important to me, and I think the first couple of times that I read a personal statement from a student, I was like, "oh my gosh, this is so cool." Especially because it's like I feel like they haven't done this kind of writing in school very much, where they're talking about themselves, and it's non fiction, but it's still creative. And so to see the like a vulnerability to see stuff that they might not share with you otherwise- and you know, some kids put their whole life story into [00:22:00] it and then you're like, "oh, this is like over a thousand words" -but seeing that is just I feel like it's a big part of why I wanted to do this work.
I think even in the interview, I said something about how I was excited to read personal statements. I don't think I got the opportunity as much in college to look at student writing, like underclassmen writing. I really wanted to work at the writing center in college, but I didn't get the opportunity to. So I've been really happy doing that helping with that editing.
I showed you that one piece also, like sometimes students really like surprise you, like sometimes their GPA is not very consistent, it's kind of low for getting into college, but they can churn out like a really amazing essay. So sometimes it shows like they haven't been challenged or they haven't been given this specific outlet.
Ridhika Tripathee: Yeah, like it's a great opportunity for them to express themselves in a way that schooling doesn't really [00:23:00] let you sometimes. Yeah, definitely.
Celeste Bloom: And then I think a learning moment for me has definitely been working with students who are more reserved. There are those in every classroom, right? And I think in the beginning, I was like kind of shy, so it was difficult to prod students who already didn't want to talk to you, like didn't really like look at you were answering with one word answers. So I remember that that was happening for me in the beginning and I really had to push myself to go up to them and break the ice more than once.
Ridhika Tripathee: I mean, and teenagers are just like a hard group of people to work with sometimes.
Celeste Bloom: Yeah, yeah, they are, they are, and they're like going through so much of their own stuff.
Ridhika Tripathee: Right.
Celeste Bloom: But I remember that there was this one girl that I was trying to break the ice with and I asked my site director how do I [00:24:00] get through to her because like right now I feel like there's kind of a block. And he was like well you know you can spend a whole check-in just trying to learn about their hobbies and things like that. Getting to know them through that instead and sometimes that rapport helps them come to you about college questions or whatever they're worried about.
I think there was like two different instances where one, I talked about this kids cartoon that I like Bluey and her [the student] younger siblings who she takes care of they watch it a lot and then so we were talking about Bluey. And then the other time it was like because I played a bunch of video games that this student had also played and then we were talking about that as well. And we ended of talking about that for most of the class time instead but that helped when then I came in I was like "we need to do FAFSA."
Ridhika Tripathee: Right, right. Then the student doesn't like shrug you off or say no tomorrow or whatever.
Celeste Bloom: Yeah and those [00:25:00] students some of them even if they don't seem like they want to talk to you like when I've started assigning stuff they do it or they have questions like they are thinking about it even if you don't see that always happening.
Ridhika Tripathee: Yeah, yeah, and I think that's something that's going to happen no matter what like profession you are in the educational field where some students seem like they're not really willing to meet you where you're at or are receptive to what you're saying but sometimes they are and they surprise you or sometimes they don't know how to express how appreciative they are to you but there are smaller ways that they do do that.
Celeste Bloom: Yeah
Ridhika Tripathee: Moving on to the next question, do you have any moments that have inspired you or motivated you so far this year?
Celeste Bloom: There have been a lot of moments like that. I think that listening to teachers who have been in the district for like 20 [00:26:00] plus years or even at Eastside specifically um, like Camden's a small community, right? I think a lot of people have like grown up here, lived here forever. Their kids went to the same school. But either way listening to those teachers and educators talking about their experience and their passion for education and for the students- a lot of teachers have like different opinions about what is the best course of action to take in a Title I school that is underfunded. Teachers have different opinions about how we scrape by and they don't always agree with each other- but they are all like super passionate about it.
I've been sitting in a class where a teacher will go on for like 20 minutes about how long they've been here, and what needs to be done, and what they've been doing in these past 20 years to help move that, their connections with students who will come back when they have their own kids and just like thank them for pushing them.
Teachers who- they know the ins and [00:27:00] outs of education in Camden, like they know tons of outside organizations- who've just built their entire lives around the school, around the kids, around Camden in general. To be so passionate about something and have such strong ties to a community has been very inspiring.
Like, I haven't been sure about, how long I'm going to stay in Philly, how long I'm going to stay with 12+ but those sort of conversations with teachers. I see the value in like staying in one place and getting to know that place or that organization or that group of people for a really long time, knowing it like the back of your hand. It's kind of crazy like how much they know and just like yeah. And so I think that has also made me- because I've also thought about like being a teacher in the future and listening to them definitely has swayed me more towards that than away from it.
Ridhika Tripathee: That's awesome, that's great. And, [00:28:00] you know, as you were saying that, I was also thinking about some teachers here that really just go above and beyond for their students. And there are some teachers who don't do that, but it's really inspiring to see those teachers who even when there are lots of teachers around them who don't match them and their level of passion and care for their students, they continue to provide that for the students. Yeah, and it is very inspiring. I agree.
Celeste Bloom: Yeah, like those teachers that bring the same energy every day. Like the ones who wear the most for Spirit Week, have extra candy, always saying hi to you and every student in the hallway. Yeah, those teachers, I'm like, how do they have the energy? How do they do it? Especially because they've been doing it for like 20 years. And sometimes I'm tired after like a week [laughs].
Ridhika Tripathee: [Laughs] Yeah no they're definitely like a positive bright light in this kind of school system. And I would say like similarly, it's been inspiring to see certain students and the way that they are so [00:29:00] determined and how even if their home situations or personal life situations aren't great or are really bad they continue to persevere and stay resilient and it's great to see students continuing to do that even if they shouldn't have to, necessarily. Yeah, it is really inspiring to be around people who do put in that level of effort.
Celeste Bloom: Yeah I was reading personal statements, there are things that the students have gone through that I've never experienced and they still come to school every day. Yeah, the level of perseverance, of just pushing through while trying to balance all of these factors.
Looking towards the future, what is something that you're excited about in the spring semester because we've still got five months of making more memories, doing more work, sending in more FAFSAs [laughs].
Ridhika Tripathee: I wouldn't say I'm [00:30:00] looking forward to doing more FAFSAs [laughs]. I don't know if anyone would say that. But I am excited for what will come after that. Being around students who are deciding where they want to go, like, and these life transitions that they're about to go into, I think will be really exciting to look into. Something else I'm excited for is prom and graduation. I didn't go to my high school prom so I'm excited to see how the students do it here. And I know they're like really passionate about prom.
Celeste Bloom: Oh, they go all out.
Ridhika Tripathee: No yeah, and you know, they've talked about renting limos, like bedazzling tuxes, like all these things. And so I'm really excited for that.
Celeste Bloom: Yeah, it's crazy because it is gonna fly by and then they're gone because they're seniors like I- We don't do that much scaffolding yet with underclassmen. Just because like it's a swing space. It's been a unique kind of year [00:31:00] anyway and we're going to start doing that. But yeah, like, they're, they're going to be gone and they're going to be off doing their own thing.
Ridhika Tripathee: Agh I didn't even realize that until you just said it. It is going to be weird when students that I see every day are just not going to be here.
Celeste Bloom: Yeah, I was talking to a teacher once before 12+ and they said one of the hardest things is actually that students are only there for four years, and then they graduate, and so yeah.
Ridhika Tripathee: Yeah, I feel like that's especially hard if you know a student for four years versus one year, like we know, that makes it even harder.
Celeste Bloom: Yeah, like we went to a signing day for one of the students and the coach who gave the speech for him has known him since he was 11. Cause he was his middle school coach and then like coached him at a community center, again Camden being such a small space, like he'd known him forever. So I couldn't even imagine after that many years.
Ridhika Tripathee: Is he staying in [00:32:00] Camden?
Celeste Bloom: No, he's going like to somewhere in Pennsylvania.
Ridhika Tripathee: Okay, it's not too far. Maybe he'll come back and visit because that's something that's been really cool to see like how students who were here last year or two years ago come back and visit.
Celeste Bloom: And I heard like if we stay over the summer that we help with alumni and so we, we help with like our cohort.
Ridhika Tripathee: Okay. Yeah.
Celeste Bloom: So we don't have to say goodbye yet, it's like a nicer, softer transition, maybe. But yeah, some things I'm looking forward to are I'm excited to have this literary magazine become a print copy. I'm still collecting pieces for that, but, I'm gonna be really happy when it's all done and it'll be in print.
Ridhika Tripathee: Yeah, that'll be so cool.
Celeste Bloom: We can have it in each site, and hopefully that'll get more people to submit next year. But, other things that I'm excited for. Yeah, graduation, [00:33:00] prom, like you said. Some new field trips as well. We're gonna go to PennCo Tech, Subaru. But yeah there's gonna be so much more packed into these months.
Well, that's about it if you're listening for fun or if you're interested in being a fellow, either way, thanks for taking the time to hear about our experiences. And be sure to check out more stories from fellows on this blog. Bye!
Ridhika Tripathee: Bye!