Ohana Means Family. Family means a Classification Level of Organisms.

Hailey Gallegos (second from the left) and her Urban Ecosystems group with Dr. Leri after presenting on Honors Day.What will it be like? Am I going to fit in? Will I be successful? These are questions that I asked myself so many times before going to college. My whole life I had thought of this moment, the moment that I got to do what I wanted with my life. On the first day of school this past year, I didn’t know what to expect. I wondered if people were going to hate me or be so much better at college than I was… Then I had my first class, biology.

For some, the first days of class are just another week of syllabi; but for me it was about trying to find my place. That first day in bio, I knew that I had chosen the right school. The next few weeks went by and I learned more names, more faces, and more prices of textbooks; but there was something else. I started to feel like I belonged somewhere. At MMC, the science department is small. To me, that makes it special. We are a pretty close-knit bunch. We all have something in common, a love for science. I see people every single day that come to the sixth floor and never have any idea which way a classroom is, that’s how much of a little island we are. Sometimes I don’t even know that the rest of the school exists because I spend so much time with my science family.

I guess we all get along because we are in the same boat. It’s like when you and your sibling have things only you can understand because you live in the same household. We laugh so often, we make science puns, and have our own inside jokes. If I went to another part of the school, students wouldn’t understand a joke that alludes to why Dr. Leri thought the class laughed at Pv=nRT. I met my best friend in the science department and I know that she will be by me for the rest of my life. In the science division, we all know each other. Probably because we never leave school. Just kidding… kind of. Even though science students are extremely competitive, we all support each other in the end. Sounds like family, right? I know that I can always count on people being there for me or helping me out with something, because that’s just what we do. Once, my peer leader Emma stood in the doors of a subway to make sure that everyone stayed together on a field trip (she’s pretty daring). The other day I had a classmate ask me for help with statistics. A few weeks ago, he had helped me with chemistry. We are a team; we help each other without expecting anything in return.

Of course, it’s not just the students who make up the family. The teachers are a big part as well. Although the work can be overwhelming, I know that they want the best for their students. They are there when we need support or a pep talk, but also when you need some tough love. Seriously, they don’t just stand up in front of a class and say pointless words, they teach. When I’ve gotten bad grades on things in class, I have rarely been made to feel like my life was over. Sure, teachers scold us, so do parents, but they all want us to succeed! We literally even have our own Instagram page (@mmcbiology) where our “lab mom” Ashley posts pictures of us because of how proud she is of our work. Each day I know that I can always count on Dr. Leri saying something hilarious in her quirky way, or Dr. Aguanno spelling something wrong again. It’s the little things that make each day bearable when you’re a science major.

Anyway, I’d say that pretty much sums up my love for the science department. We make up a sleep deprived, studied out, crazy family…. And I wouldn’t change a thing.