The Manheim Township School District (MTSD) Link Crew program teaches and fosters kindness, empathy, inclusivity and equality. Those qualities are timeless life-affirming virtues that are especially relevant around the start of school.

"Here at Manheim Township, Link Crew is something I feel very passionate about," said Chris Houck, one of five Link Crew advisers at the high school. "I feel good every time I walk away from training or activities; just seeing the work that (student leaders) do is astounding. We have a very good Link Crew program because it's supported by teachers, administrators and the community. We have students who want to do better and want to make a difference."

Part of a national peer mentoring and student transition initiative called the Boomerang Project, Link Crew is a club activity in MTSD that combines elements of extracurricular activities and students helping students. Older students take younger students under their wings, show them the ropes and help them feel welcome as they transition from the middle school to the high school and from elementary schools to the middle school.

The special attention is intended to help the younger students feel less anxious and more comfortable and also is meant to create an environment more conducive for learning. After an application process, a selection process and hours of training, the older students learn leadership skills, patience and communication skills.

It's a classic win-win scenario.

"In the high school setting, younger students look up to upperclassmen," said Oly Sponaugle, a senior and a Link Crew leader. "But Link Crew looks at it differently, like we're one big family. I think younger students look up to older students in a different way."

"We make it a point to be on the same level," said Luke Reinking, a senior and another Link Crew leader. "We make sure the younger students know that we're all friends here. We want their first year to be a good year."

There are currently 105 juniors and seniors involved as leaders with the Link Crew program at Manheim Township High School (MTHS). Those upperclassmen are broken down into teams of four or five and assigned to groups of about 25 to 27 freshmen.

The leaders spend about an hour every two weeks with their groups of freshmen, engaging in activities, playing games, interacting and getting to know them better. The bonds that are formed spill over into the high school hallways, the cafeteria and even outside of the walls of MTHS.

"I'm a member of the girls' tennis team, and in the fall, we have freshmen girls coming out for the team," said Caroline Schuler, a senior and a Link Crew leader. "I build stronger relationships with them through Link Crew. It makes me feel like I'm a better person. It makes me feel appreciated."

"I remember I had a Link Crew member when I was a freshman," said Matea Daigle, a senior and a Link Crew leader. "She was in the musicals, and she was telling us about herself. It was really cool to have a role model and have someone to connect with. You get to know Link Crew members on a personal level."

The 2025-26 school year in the MTSD began on Aug. 25.

"When I was a freshman, I felt lost," said Oly. "It's a big school, and I was scared I wouldn't know where to go. But I could go up to my Link Crew leader and ask them where to go. Freshmen can feel isolated. We're kind of giving freshmen a person to look up to."

"I love the energy at school," said Caroline. "It's a place where all of my friends are. Just being at school is so exciting. Seeing everyone feels so welcoming because we're all in the same environment."

The Link Crew program was established at MTSD in 2019. Since then, thousands of students have been directly or indirectly impacted by it.

"It started when one of our students asked to have someone come alongside of them, and it started as a connect club," said Nicole Eshelman, one of Link Crew's founding advisers at MTHS. "Link Crew is very energetic; it's hands-on. I feel like the program has really grown. We put these actions into practice, and we don't always see the results, but it's changing the community of our school."