In the hallways of Center Grove, a group of dedicated students make a distinctive path, opting to trade their study hall for a supporting role. These students serve as athletic and officer aides, embracing responsibilities that offer a glimpse into the inner workings of the school administration.

“As a student, you know, we think that the adults know what they are doing and they have everything organized, but that’s not true at all,” junior Veronica Martin said. “This is their job and sometimes it gets overwhelming at times, and they can get the help that they need.”

An office aide is someone who is around the guidance office and is willing to perform duties like give out passes from the guidance counselors, stamp or organize objects. 

“I’ve been getting closer to the guidance counselors here, so I just like to be in [the guidance office] in general, and I can help them,” senior Callie Bryant said. “I can help them and still get what I need to have accomplished.”

Compared to Bryant, who started as an aide this semester, Martin has been an office aide before, and she understands the importance of being an office aide. They both have a passion for helping others and want to continue doing that.

“There was a day that an office employee came out and asked us if we could put papers into envelopes and put addresses on them, and there was a lot,” Martin said. “There were like 500 papers and envelopes, so he definitely couldn’t have done that in his free time. It’s tasks like that that they need help with and that they don’t have time for doing. We make sure we get those things done.”

Students can also serve as aides in the athletic office. They work closely with athletic staff and do behind-the-scenes work for the athletic office.

“I’ve always wanted to work in sports, so I thought it was a great opportunity to work in the athletic department to get experience and knowledge of how the athletic [office] works,” junior Paige Staab said. “This can help me because this will help me in college or future employment and I can say that I’ve worked in an athletic department before.”

Being an athletic office-aide can bring with it memories and experiences that make the tasks presented unique.

“My favorite part of being an office was being able to ride the golf cart to set up the markers, put up all the flags and set up the locker rooms,” Chandler said. “One day, Mrs Tolle asked me if I could help her to file the physicals that were coming in because of the start of track season. So I had 50 packets of physicals that I had to arrange alphabetically and put in the filing cabinet.”

Despite the workload, students still enjoy working this facet of the high school because of the feeling of validation that they receive afterwards.

“If I ever have the chance of helping somebody, that’s what I am going to do,” Martin said. “Being useful, that’s why I gave up my study hall. Instead of doing absolutely nothing, I decided I have to actually do something, so I decided to be an office aide.”