By: Cheney Hurley –

February has just started and students are already registering for classes for the next school year. The fall semester of 2018-2019 doesn’t start for another six months, but counselors say that they need to start early with the registration process.

“We need to have students register for classes before the end of February because the district determines how many teachers are needed for the next year,” said Marti Mueting, counselor for students with last names beginning with K-Me. “The department chairs and administrators begin to see how many sections of each class need to be offered to meet the student requests. All of this must be done sooner rather than later.”

While it is early, counselors have been coming to students’ classes to help them figure out what they need to take in order to graduate high school, what colleges require for acceptance, and what the students themself want to take in order to ease the transition and make for a more smooth registration process.

“We help over 2,300 students register for classes [and] most students have questions about either the process of online registration or specific questions about grad requirements; counselors are the experts on those questions,” said Kimberly Glathar, counselor for students with last names beginning with Fs-J.

Mueting encourages students to take a world language (Spanish, French, or German), advanced math, science, as well as English and writing classes. She says this will help them prepare for college, if they plan on going, and that all students should take advantage of the free opportunity to try courses that could be beneficial to them later in life.

Freshman Tanner Gevelinger seems to be following Mueting’s advice as he is registering for many differentiated and more advanced courses for his sophomore year. Gevelinger sees benefit in taking courses that might require a little more effort and critical thinking.

“I like the challenge and I think it might be good for colleges. [They see] that I’m taking harder classes so that [shows] I’m trying really hard in school,” said Gevelinger.

Gevelinger does have many challenging courses that may sound a little daunting, but he is excited for some of his electives like Sports and Entertainment Marketing.

“I’m taking a business class this semester and I’m liking it a lot so far, so that’s why I’m taking a business class next semester. I’m [also] probably going to go into business when I’m older,” said Gevelinger.

Whatever classes you choose to take, it is important to take course registration seriously because it can truly affect how many and what type of classes are provided that year and also ensures as many students as possible get to take the classes they prefer.

“Making careful, intelligent and thoughtful choices during the process helps maximize the students are placed into the classes they really want,” said Glathar.

Counselor Marti Mueting answers current freshmen’s questions and helps them register for next year’s classes (photo by Brianne Clark).

Tanner Gevelinger (9) registers for classes for his sophomore year