Hundreds of high school students from across Southern California converged on Murrieta on Wednesday to learn how to be better mentors to freshmen at their schools.

The leadership conference at Vista Murrieta High School was for juniors and seniors who participate in their school “Link Crew” programs, in which incoming ninth-graders are assigned student mentors to help them navigate the wilds of high school.

“The goal is to make the transition from middle school to high school easy,” said Sabrina Sobel, a Vista Murrieta senior and Link Crew leader.

It’s not just a welcome-wagon orientation program. Link Crew mentors stick with their freshmen mentees throughout the year, befriending them, tutoring them and encouraging them to get involved in school activities.

Assistant Principal Mike Fages said connecting freshmen to upperclassmen who are passionate about seeing them succeed in high school can make all the difference. But many freshmen need a push.

“Most of them come in apprehensive,” he said. “They stand back and they wait. A lot of times, they wait till their sophomore year.”

Getting involved in the full spectrum of high school activities from the start correlates with success later in high school and beyond, he said.

The days of, “We’re gonna stuff you in a trashcan” freshman hazing are over, Fages said. Instead, the program is “creating a culture where the older kids care about the younger kids.”

At Vista Murrieta, 80 juniors and seniors serve as mentors. Each is assigned a group of about 10 freshmen. The program has grown over the years and now most freshmen participate, he said.

Hien Nguyen, an algebra teacher and the faculty coordinator for Link Crew at Vista Murrieta, said the conference will help students to sustain their efforts throughout the year.

“We’re trying to rejuvenate them, to inspire them,” Nguyen said.

At Wednesday’s conference, students honed social skills to help them draw out freshman mentees with “icebreaker” games and other activities.

Ethan Anderson, 16, a Vista Murrieta junior, said he joined Link Crew because his own freshman year was rough and he wanted to help others avoid that experience. He didn’t have a Link Crew mentor, he said.

“I didn’t want one,” he said. “I thought I was too cool.”

Marissa Chavez, 18, and Miguel Romero Jr., 17, who graduated from Vista Murrieta this year, were Link Crew mentors. Chavez now is majoring in psychology at Mt. San Jacinto College and Romero has joined the Navy. They said they are such fans of the program that they returned to campus Wednesday to help out with the conference.

“It’s something that I love being a part of,” Chavez said. “We’re making such a big impact on freshmen.”

Romero said he thinks the juniors and seniors get as much out of the program as the freshmen — they learn to be leaders. Likewise, he said it fosters a sense of unity among all grades, preventing problems such as bullying and racial division.

“It’s like having a big brother or big sister on campus,” Romero said.