That Day We Turned First Day Jitters into Lifelong Friendship

Remember your first day at high school? The confusion of finding your way around, the anxiety of meeting new faces, and the uncertainty about what lies ahead. Now envision an upperclassman by your side, guiding you through the corridors, calming your nerves, and integrating you into the community. That's the magic of Link Crew at Shanghai American School.

Link Crew is a leadership and orientation training program, which prepares our junior and senior Link Leaders to take on a crew of freshman to get their year started off right.

Under the leadership of Mr. Crachiolo at the Pudong campus and Mr. Fusco at the Puxi campus, Link Crew serves as SAS's secret ingredient for fostering an inclusive environment for newcomers. More than just a welcoming party, Link Crew members are your initial friends and the compass to making high school your second home.

Take it from YuYang, a Grade 11 Link Crew Leader from SAS Pudong. Selected through a stringent process, YuYang was inspired by his own Link Crew leaders. "They offered advice on study and time management skills and helped me build a sense of belonging. I viewed becoming a Link Crew leader as my opportunity to repay the community," he shares.

Link Crew leaders, like GaYoon and Stanley from SAS Puxi, believe in the power of shared interests and personal connection. From helping students navigate the vast world of SAS extracurriculars to helping them find their way around in the first busy weeks, these leaders are beacons of support and friendship.

GaYoon recollects how she was inspired to become a Link Crew leader by her own experiences as a freshman, "I remember my own Link Crew leaders when I was in 9th grade. I had a really close bond with one of them, and he would give me a lot of advice about high school.”

Stanley shared his favorite part about Link Crew, saying, "With the students who didn't know what high school was like, I felt like I made a big difference in their life because I was bringing them around school and telling them all about what high school was like. We got to see them go from being shy to confident so quickly."

So here's to the 'big siblings' of Link Crew, the superheroes sans capes. They make the expansive campuses of SAS feel a little smaller and help transform school into a home away from home. It forms part of what makes studying at SAS an unforgettable journey, and a place students are so excited to go to each morning.

BONDING. EVERYDAY AT SAS.