INTERVIEW: Going back to high school, but this time undercover

For some people, going back to high school is the premise for a nightmare. For other people, it would be a dream come true.

A&E is taking this hypothetical and making it a reality on the new series Undercover High, which premieres Tuesday, Jan. 9 at 10 p.m. On the show, seven young adults enroll as students at a high school in Topeka, Kansas. They spend a semester trying to relive those memories and learn a few lessons from today’s high school students.

One of the featured subjects is Nicolette. “So I happened to see an online posting about the project, and I was interested because of my own personal experiences that I went through in high school,” she said in a recent phone interview. “And I thought it would be great to get involved in it.”

Nicolette said the overall experience was incredible, difficult and challenging. She was hoping to share her insights with the many students she encountered on a daily basis, but sometimes the reality series proved nerve-wracking.

“The first day of my second high school experience I was very nervous,” she said. “I think a lot of it was the anticipation. I didn’t know where I was going to sit at the lunch table. You would imagine being an adult that could be confident, [I would] not have those insecurities, but everything came back. I think the most challenging part was recognizing that I was being viewed as a high schooler, not an adult, and making sure to shift certain habits, things to fit in. And it was wild.”

Of the many lessons she learned, cyberbullying was at the top of the list. Social media has transformed the high school landscape and made it completely different compared to when Nicolette was in school the first time around. Another lesson she learned involved the changing attitudes toward teen pregnancy.

“It’s interesting to see what stereotypes have stayed the same and what other ones have changed,” she said. “I think that social media has a large role on students’ perceptions and their perceptions of others and themselves. I definitely learned that, I don’t know, I think it’s harder to be a student today than it was to be a student when I was in high school. I think a lot of that is social media. To give you an example, when I went to high school before, the bell would ring, and I would leave. And so any bullying, anything that I felt uncomfortable with, I left. I went home, but now the bell rings. And these students are experiencing this 24/7 because of social media.”

She was nervous that she looked too old to be walking those hallways, but during her entire experience taping the show, no one found out Nicolette’s true identity. The participants on Undercover High ranged in age from 21 to 26.

“I think that when I was there, I think my biggest issue was my personality,” she said. “I came off very mature rather than having that carefree spirit of a high schooler, but after I became comfortable and started making friends and understanding what the dynamic was at the school, it just came natural because I was myself the entire time. … I was just reenacting the younger version of who I am to reveal what was actually happening, and I think the whole process itself, it was challenging to have a mindset of an adult but to try and remember that I’m a student. So that was a really hard thing to balance.”

She added: “I am beyond excited to see what this ends up being. I think that the overall concept of this project is amazing. I think students, they have a voice. They need to be heard, along with students all around the nation, and I think that parents who watch this, students, teachers, friends, everybody can learn something from this. It was a very positive experience with a lot of challenges and adversity, but overall, I think that when it comes out, it should make a huge difference.”

By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com

Undercover High premieres Tuesday, Jan. 9 at 10 p.m. on A&E. Click here for more information.