Whether you have diligently completed your Xello lessons every year, or if you’re planning on starting them all a week before the deadline in senior year, at some point you may have asked yourself: “Why Xello?”

Xello is a software application part of the High School and Beyond plan, which is mandatory for all public high schools in the state of Washington. Students are not allowed to graduate if their Xello lessons are incomplete.

“Xello provides students an opportunity to explore their career and school interests, work values, and more,” one of Liberty’s College and Career specialists, Jillian Moss, said.

However, these benefits don’t come without some hard work from the students.

“Xello on its own is going to be flat and two dimensional. It takes the student to come in and engage with the platform,” Moss said.

Indeed, it is a difficulty many face. In a survey taken by Liberty students, nearly 70% of respondents conveyed some degree of dissatisfaction towards Xello.

“I spent so many years without Xello that I figured most of the lessons out by myself through trial and error,” senior Charlotte Ury said. 

Ury isn’t alone in this sentiment; others have issues with Xello’s relevancy as well.

 “Some of the lessons aren’t applicable to me at this time,” sophomore Akash Krishna said. “I wish there was more customization on what lessons you could do because lessons that are really important for some people won’t be for others.”

Nevertheless, Xello has proven beneficial to many.

 “Xello has helped me see careers that might be a good match for me and narrow down which careers I might choose,” Krishna said.

The software also has the potential to help underclassmen plan years ahead.

“Xello has helped me find career paths that I wouldn’t usually think about,” freshman Andrew Olstein said. “After Xello I learned more about my interests and the careers that suited me best.”

Overall, as a relatively new software application for Liberty, Xello undoubtedly has room for improvement.

 “This year is a lot about learning,” Moss said. “We hope to learn from this year’s experience to see what could be changed in the future.” 

In the meantime, the College and Career Center has provided information on their website for students who have further questions about Xello or their High School and Beyond plan.

 “Our responsibility as College and Career specialists is to understand and communicate those requirements to students,” Moss said.