All Kings eighth-graders get a unique and early taste of the full high school experience — and it’s only 500 feet away.

Every year, nearly 300 students take the walk from the Junior High to the High School for Kings Freshman Camp (KFC), a two-day, full-immersion experience of what it’s like to be a high school student.

The goal of KFC is for eighth-grade students to learn everything they can about Kings High School, to build relationships with teachers and upperclassmen, and to learn the ropes of spending four years at Kings.

“KFC Counselors,” or students that applied to be a role model for the the eighth grade students during the two-day camp, put their heads together with a group of 6 to 10 incoming freshmen, competing against other groups for acts of kindness and group productivity.

“I think it helps everyone involved,”  says KHS Junior Tommy Bruns, who has participated in KFC since he was a freshman.

Bruns says that KFC helps comfort the ache of the “first day of high school.”

“I still see all of these kids everyday,” Bruns said, adding that he continues to make friends with kids he meets during KFC.

“I think it does help them to have Juniors and Seniors know their names and can acknowledge them in public.”

Principal Rob Burnside agrees. He said KFC is an important transition for all eighth-graders. Studies show that most high school freshmen experience an academic setback in the first few months of school. This “slump” can set them back so much that they never quite recover.

“I think the whole goal of KFC is to make sure that students can be optimistic about their time here,” Burnside said.  “I want to make sure that the whole student body is getting something out of it, the most important that relationships and trusts are being built.”