Four Years that make all the Difference: How have you changed since freshman year?

Paul Palacios, Lilly Schneider, and Rianna Wood, Introduction to Journalism

High school students tend to change drastically throughout their high school career. It may be a change in their social life, work ethics, friendships, or even their personal style. High school is a time of growth, prosperity, and making plans for after graduation. These four years are leading up to your life as a grown individual ready to take on real life. You find your interests and what you’re good at, furthermore preparing you for the outside world.

Hayden Girardin is a senior at WHS who has attended high school in Williston for four years. She entered high school with the mindset that it’s not important, and she admitted to not trying her hardest on all her schoolwork. School was more about friends than anything her freshman year, she says, because you have way more classes together. Once you become an upperclassmen, you likely have fewer classes with your friends, and you can focus more. Hayden also confessed to possessing a more rebellious attitude as she began her freshman year, and now realizes that these past four years have been the most important in her life so far.

Without high school, college is out of the question. Passing these four years automatically sets you up for success, and once she realized that, her work ethic improved. She began trying her best in all her classes, and taking extra classes to introduce her to her future career. Hayden strived to become a plastic surgeon as a freshmen, but now plans to attend a 4 year college to earn a BSN for OB. Her career choice as well as her work ethic has improved throughout school.

Hayden is one of the many seniors that has excelled in social and intellectual ways, and she’s ready to show the world what she can do. Glad that she put her all into her school work, she now has big plans for the future and knows she will succeed and  live a great life.

School is all about finding out what interests and potential we have.

 

Emily Morenski has also attended WHS for four years. Starting as a naive freshman and ending as an outstanding young woman, she has not only improved herself through her studies but also as a musician. Emily has a dream to become a music teacher, as well as a worship leader. In order to achieve her goals, she knew she had to work  hard in school to get her the grades for the college she needs to succeed.

Emily was just as social her freshmen year as she is now. Emily was extremely busy, therefore she grew apart from her friends, but they reconnected during her senior year. She has always kept up with her studies while participating in music extracurricular activities. After being invested in the music program so much, she did have to leave dance after being in it for over 15 years. She had found she didn’t have time for it.

Her dreams and plans after high school freshmen year had not changed much. The dream of being a music teacher continued throughout the years as she plans to move to Minneapolis and attend a college. Being involved in clubs and activities made her more and more interested in taking up that profession as the years progressed.

Emily believes in cherishing every moment you have in high school. She agrees the four years go extremely fast, and wants everyone to appreciate the whole experience. After high school, you lose contact with almost everyone.