Schools tend to have competitions in many ways with each other, whether that be sports, robotics, or any other extracurricular activities. But with these schools coming together and participating in the SWWC (South and West Washtenaw Consortium) program together, rivalry and competitions can take place in the classroom. So students may participate in small, friendly competitions, or students may bring their rivalries from their own schools.
“I'd say it's all really friendly competition. Obviously, we mess around with kids depending on what school they're from, Chelsea or Milan or Dexter,” Rider Tetereau (Saline ‘26) said. “It's all really friendly competition. We all get along really well, and everyone is having a good time.”
Usually, there is a lot of fun to be had when having a competition between friends. There is also a competition in classes in general with the SWWC award that highlights the hardest-working student from each consortium class.
“We're gonna see who gets the SWWC award this year, because I know a kid from Milan got it last time. We're gonna hope Saline takes it home this year. But I mean, usually it's just who gets their labs done first, who gets the higher score on the exams. Who gets the higher score on the midterms and the end of the trimester quizzes,” Tetereau said.
Usually, in a competition, you want to do better than your opponent(s). When applied to the consortium classes, it can help you excel at learning more efficiently and with better focus. But no matter what, the rivalries won't really be more than just mere friendliness made to have a laugh or help us be better.
“The only type of rivalries you may see is friendship rivalries, because at a track meet, I've run against guys that I've gone to school with, and that's fun. We always sit there and talk at the line and have a good time, laugh, and giggle. We don't like to come into the classroom and talk badly to each other. We lift each other up. So it's usually always in good spirits,” Brayden Lerette (Milan ’26)
With these friendly competitions that students have inside or outside of school, it's all just to have fun and lift each other up. The students tend to start these rivalries and competitions so that they can prove something.
“At the end of the day, we're just people working together towards getting either a certification or proving that we can, or proving to ourselves that we can get said certification,” Kasen Salazar (Dexter ’26) said.
