Students were reminded what it means to be a Sionian outside the classroom, specifically online, at an all-school assembly on Thursday during Maisons. It was hosted by Director of Public Relations and Alumnae Affairs Lauren Golden.

Because Golden handles all of Sion’s social media, she gave the talk and said she had been wanting to do so ever since she came to work for Sion five years ago. She was finally given the opportunity due to concerning behavior from some students online in past years and recent weeks.

Golden explained in her lecture that she, too, grew up in the age of technology. Although she is 10-15 years older than most girls at Sion, Golden relates to teenagers’ wanting to be cool. She knows that no one is perfect, but wants the student body to understand that when their mistakes are posted, they are there forever.

“You’re constantly being forced to use social media, whether you want to or not,” Golden said. “Your digital footprint started a long time ago and it doesn’t disappear.”

Social media is more prominent now than ever with students frequently checking, posting and talking about what they see online. Golden’s aim was to get the point across that a college admissions officer, future employer, parent or teacher may not have the same opinion as a teenager on what is “cool” to post online. Whether it’s a tweet, Instagram like, or Snapchat story, everything that girls do on their profiles contributes to their reputation, which in turn, reflects on Sion.

“Nobody is immune to this, and it’s something we could all remind ourselves of frequently,” Golden said. “Sometimes we don’t stop to think about the consequences, and so I’m happy to give students a reality check.”

Golden implored girls to take the time to look at their privacy settings, filter through their profiles and do some damage control. She wants everyone to be smart, safe users and knows that in the long run it will pay off because it will save many girls from having their mistakes online cause bigger problems for themselves.

“I thought Mrs. Golden was really cool,” senior Emma Romano said. “She didn’t make it seem like we were being scolded or anything, and it was very helpful because obviously it can happen to any of us.”