This school year’s end is fast approaching. For other grades, it’s just like any other school year, but for the Seniors, it means the end of an era: high school’s bittersweet conclusion. For many students, that means going off to college. For others, it may mean something different.
“[I’m] definitely going to college, between MSU [Michigan State University] and UMich [University of Michigan], and I feel like that’s one of the only hard decisions left in high school,” senior Gurleen Kaur said.
Other students have different plans.
“I actually don’t know where I’m going to college yet, I’m still waiting to hear back from 9 schools about where I’m going, but I am going to school for musical theater,” senior Delayne Hengesbach said.
Hengesbach has been doing theater for nearly her entire life, starting when she was five. However, by going to college for theater, she’s not leaving it behind.
“It’s definitely hard, closing that chapter of life, but it’s also exciting because I know that I’m going from high school theater to professional work,” she said.
Senior best friends Annie Grew and Akira Laing have been handling the fact that they won’t be going to college together.
“We’ve prepared ourselves, but I think when the time comes, it’s actually going to be a lot more difficult than we thought,” Grew said.
Laing feels the same about going separate ways.
“I think because we’ve been talking about it for so long, it’s made it a lot less difficult to accept that it’s happening, and I think that even though we’re going to separate places after high school, it won’t affect our friendship,” she stated.
The end of high school is traditionally regarded as a monumental moment of adolescence, with all kinds of realizations flooding the minds of teens who may not even want to grow up.
“Knowing that these are people that I’ve grown up with for like 17 years, and I might not see them next year…I still think I’m a freshman. Like, no, I’m literally graduating in a few months. My mom and I talk about it all the time. She’s like, ‘I feel like you literally were in 8th grade yesterday,’” Hengesbach said.
Senior Ellery Curtis encouraged soon-to-be seniors to keep pushing, as some things during high school years can be tough to endure.
“If you’re going through something, or you’re not feeling motivated, just know that it does pay off, and maybe not in a way you expect,” she advised.
Many seniors are affected by senioritis, or a lack of motivation from knowing they’ll finish school soon. However, the Seniors have lots of upcoming events to look forward to attending before they graduate.
“I’m so excited, I’m so ready to be done with high school. We’re really just showing up so we can go to the events– like prom and stuff,” Grew said.
It may be easy to change throughout high school due to stress, new friends, and new experiences. Many students look back at past years of high school in embarrassment.
“Freshman year and sophomore year, that was rough, but I don’t want to take that back or take any embarrassing moments back. I’m proud of who I am,” Curtis stated.
Kaur agrees, “I have a lot to look forward to,” she said. “I won’t be like, ‘oh my God, I remember not doing this,’ or, ‘ew I hated that.’”
Hengesbach leaves words of wisdom for incoming seniors: “Stay true to yourself, because ultimately, that’s the person you’re going off to college with.”
