Potentially making a comeback in the 2025-2026 school year at PRHS is a peer communications class, planned to be taught by current Honors English teacher, Matthew Carroll. The concept of Peer Communications was initially introduced approximately 30 years ago, but slowly died off In the registration course guide that students received during tutorial on January 9, the class was described as including work on team building, self awareness and esteem, and of course communications skills. Students will have the opportunity to interact with elementary and middle school peers. The idea of this course was based upon students helping students.
“Statistics that showed students who struggle with alcohol, drugs, social, emotional issues, and depression have a better quality of life when they have someone their own age to talk to about it,” Carroll said.
This class has previously been offered at Paso Robles High School by interest of Mrs. Jennifer Martinez, but died off slowly after as the instructor role was assigned to Carroll, but could not fit being the Peer Communications head into his duties which included Head of Varsity Football and Track, at the time . This duty was passed onto other teachers which then transferred to other schools, which led the school to be unable to offer the course, without an instructor to teach it.
“Students who might not have gone to college were able to go to college because this separated them.” Carroll said, PRHS is the only known high school in San Luis Obispo county to offer the Peer Communication course. Peer Communications is an elective that may look good on a resume whether it be for a job or for college.
A new course means new ideas which means a new classroom focus. The focus of this course is social emotional intelligence. “If I see someone struggling, , how am I able to help that person and give them the skills they need to help themselves,” said Carroll.
PRHS is so widely diverse, brining together students of a multitude of backgrounds and cultures, but, on this campus, they become ONE.
