By Emily Southern and Emma Duncan--Eagle Staff Writer and Eagle Editor
As the class of 2022’s senior year comes to a close, some Eagles chose to look back on their past four years and give the class of 2025, and all future freshmen, some guidance as they soar through high school.
“Don’t stress about who’s in your class. Just try to make friends with everyone,” senior Eliott Kemp began. “I was really anxious about who I didn’t have with me and who I did. Now as a senior, I’ve learned to talk with everyone and it’s made school more chill and less stressful.”
Like Kemp, senior Samantha Perdue worried about who she’d be sitting next to all semester long.
“A lot of classes I chose for my friends because I was scared of being by myself and it led me to miss a lot of the classes I needed,” she recalled.
As Perdue climbed through class ranks, she’s learned from her past mistakes. Others recommended tackling a tougher course load early on to have an easier time later.
“Get your required classes out of the way early. Even though it’ll be harder it’s worth it. Learn time management, don’t procrastinate, and please don’t stop in the middle of the hallways,” senior Ashleigh Dillon recommended. “I have easier classes now because I finished my requirements early. I do still procrastinate though.”
Dillon isn’t alone in her delays.
“I’m taking three classes this semester needed to graduate and can feel the amount of stress affecting work for all my classes,” senior Fletcher Foley admitted.
While some senior stress sprouts from procrastination with required classes, others are feeling the effects of letting schoolwork in general sit on the sidelines.
“When I was a freshman, I tried a little in school, but not as much as I wish I would have,” senior Emily Greene testified. “Now that I’m older, I’ve had to fight to raise my GPA and work hard to make sure my grades stayed good to combat the previous bad grades. In the end, the work I put in now shows on my transcript, but my old grades also follow me. I know at times school work feels like more of a second priority, especially when you are committed to other things such as friends, sports, and clubs; but in the end, you will thank yourself later down the road that you made school a focus early on in high school.”
While homing in on academics is important to some seniors, others prefer to use their teen years to live life to the fullest.
“Up until the end of my sophomore year, I really stressed about life after high school. My brain was constantly college plans, choosing a career, thinking about where I’d like to settle down, and so many other things. While those things are super important, I found that I was missing out on so much [of] the life that was in front of me,” senior Kobe Levisy reflected. “Worrying about tomorrow won’t make it get here any faster, so I hope you learn to slow down, live in the moment, and do everything that makes you happy! You only get to be this young once, so have fun and don’t think about things too much. Everything always works itself out!”
Both in school and out in the real world, senior James Pagans has found value in chasing his dreams.
“Don’t be afraid of stepping out and doing something that you want to,” he said. “Whatever your dreams are, go out and at least try for them because you never know what could happen. High school is a stressful experience [for] many students so to make it to where high school is enjoyable, you need to go out and try something that you’d love to do.”
Regardless of whether one’s advice was educational or adventurous, these seniors expressed a hope that their words would help the freshman class lead better lives than their predecessors.
“Don’t be like me. Listen to the advice of your peers; they have been through exactly what you are going through now and only want the best for you,” Greene concluded.