Changes of scene: transfer Titans adjust to new environment, relay experiences

At the beginning of August, senior Elina Suska moved from a charming city with historic buildings to a town at the heart of Silicon Valley’s technological innovations. The move from Ottawa, Canada to Palo Alto was prompted by a job opportunity offered to Suska’s father. “It was a big change for me to move here,” she said. “It all went very quickly from the moment we left Ottawa.” She...

After one year at Monta Vista High School, senior Arun Gottipati transferred to Gunn, where he has found a new community. Gottipati transferred at the beginning of his sophomore year after his family moved. Even though changing schools may seem daunting, he found the transition to be uncomplicated. “It was pretty smooth,” he said. “Because of the fact that I transferred at the end of...

For junior Alex Farrington, moving from snowy Scandinavia to sunny California might have been a big temperature change, but he was happy to adjust. This past July, Farrington came to Gunn as an exchang student. “I wanted to see what it was like be-ing an American student, just to try something new,” he said. Before coming to the Bay Area, Farrington lived in Denmark, attending a school called...