On November 26, 2013, Reality Day came to DHS. The premise of Reality Day is to show the junior class what it might be like for each of them if they continued down their current path in life. The activity did this by having each of the students choose a potential career and using current statistics, provided them with salaries, credit scores, and other important information for supporting themselves.

Once all of this information was distributed, the participants had to go to various booths and collect things that are required for living in today’s society. These booths included budgeting for groceries, housing, car rental, retirement savings, and many more financial needs.

The booths were designed to simulate real-world experiences with providing for one’s self at age 25.

Overall, much of the event was well received by the student population. There were several people who came away from the gathering with positive reactions. Junior Garrett Condon said, “It was a good learning experience and a good way to start thinking about the future.”

A large group of students considered the experience to be enlightening. “Reality Day was an eye-opening experience about all of the things my parents probably think about,” said junior Michael Zhang. “It opened my eyes about the things I would otherwise not have seen had I not participated.”

Some students appreciated the event as a source of financing in the real world. Junior Nathan Valm said, “You actually got to see real financing. You got to understand how you actually have to pay things off.”

“It provided me with insight on the spending patterns of the real world,” said junior Drew McArthur.

There was a group of students who were fairly indifferent about the event, having set their expectations low, one being junior Zachary Remy. “It wasn’t as bad as I thought,” he said. “I like that they tried.”

While good reviews regarding Reality Day were plentiful, bad reviews were not scarce. “I learned that the reality of life is not what was portrayed at Dartmouth High,” junior Zachery Hodgins said.  When asked to elaborate, he explained how he thought that Reality Day “was no more a reality than standing in a gym pretending to be in our 20’s.”

No, we don’t know what our future truly holds for us, and we certainly will not find out through a gymnasium.

But was that the point?

Junior Amelia Perry said, “The point was to show me that I will not survive the career I picked.”

Kelly McManus stated, “It was terribly unrealistic.”

Reality Day was an experience worth having to the DHS juniors as many students were able to effectively analyze the path that they are on currently. Some students just needed to attend with more of an open mind.