CHOCOWINITY — What should you do in high school to prepare for college? How is college food? How much sleep do you get each night?

These were the kinds of questions asked Tuesday at Southside High School’s fourth-annual Alumni Day.

Thirty-five Seahawk alumni came back to participate in the event — ranging in studies, from communications to mathematics; in years, from freshmen to graduate students; and in colleges, from Pitt Community College to North Carolina State University.

“It was so exciting to see 35 alumni wanting to take time out of their vacation to give back to their school. Southside students learned a lot about what they need to do now to prepare for college as well as what it will be like when they get there,” said organizer Tina Petty, who teaches math at Southside.

When Alumni Day started four years ago, it was only a handful of students who returned to talk to Petty’s classes. In the years to follow, it grew to include the senior class, then the entire school and now includes a meet-and-greet session in the media center.

The alumni are assigned a classroom in which to speak and answer questions, and the meet and greet allows for more one-on-one time, according to Petty.

“The addition of the meet and greet allowed students the chance to talk with students from a school or major they are interested in while in a smaller setting,” she said.

Senior Desoray Elks said she found Alumni Day to be helpful. She asked questions about living on campus and how strict professors’ policies are on attendance.

Elks said she has already applied to 13 colleges so far, but she’d like to start out at a community college first and then transfer.

Jasmine Hines Hardy is a freshman at Pitt Community College, studying medical sonography. Hardy said she had to adjust to the different age groups she spoke with, as the Southside freshmen didn’t know nearly as much about college and how to prepare.

“The seniors, they knew most everything,” she said.

Hardy said she tried to emphasize to students the importance of taking college courses offered in high school.

“It was a very beneficial day for all involved,” Petty said.

In years to come, Petty said she would like to have some alumni in the military to come back, as well, because many students are interested in that career path.