High school. It’s simultaneously the time of our lives and the worst experience ever. For the duration of it, our opinions of it change drastically; as we transition from middle schoolers to freshmen, we joy at the fact we’re finally in high school. As we go from sophomores to juniors we groan at how tiring high school really is, and as we leave high school to enter college, we weep for all the memories left behind at our alma maters.

Most freshmen grow to despise high school, which is expected. Paige Foshee, freshman, reflected on the past year, sharing that her high school experience had been okay so far with some highlights. Like many high schoolers, she is involved, playing the clarinet in the marching band, and she’s also taking AP classes, which are known generators of stress. 

“To reduce my stress, I either hang out with my friends and take an hour off to do something enjoyable to give myself a break,” Foshee said. “It gets hard sometimes but if you just improve your time management skills it gets easier.”

Moreover, as her first year of high school ended, she concluded that she’s a more positive person and has a more positive outlook on her future. Her relationships have aided her with this.

“My friends have always been there for me when I need someone to go to, and I have some good teachers this year that I know I can rely on,” Foshee said.

If you think about it, the teenagers in movies and TV shows are usually sophomores. They always have crazy drama surrounding them too, obviously for plot purposes, but sophomore year is pretty exciting in real life as well.

“I think high school is really fun, and I’m not gonna get anything like it anytime soon,” said Adil Basha, sophomore.  

Basha, attending the Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science (TAMS) at UNT in the fall has spent the time following his acceptance into TAMS reminiscing high school thus far.

“As the years progress, I’m gonna look back on my high school experience, and look at how much I’ve grown and be thankful for that. I’ll have all of this knowledge on how to tackle college and life’s obstacles, all thanks to Centennial,” Basha said.

In addition to his academic achievements, Basha competed in HOSA his freshman and sophomore year and attended five conferences during that time, visiting places like Orlando and Corpus Christi.

“I learned a lot about medical careers and I competed and won lots of events. These extracurriculars shaped me to be a better person because I had a lot more exposure with people and talk to them in my downtime rather than mingle with them at school. I gained a lot of social skills,” Basha said.

When asked what advice he would give to incoming freshman, he said not to be too intimidated to live up to the standards to keep your GPA and your rank up.

“Rank and GPA are not your life. This is cliche, but you have other things to do with your life. You only have one chance at childhood, so you should live it to the fullest,” Basha said. “Grades and GPA should take a backseat. High school is about making memories and having fun experiences.”

Junior year is an interesting time in high school. You aren’t done with high school, but you’re almost there. Heerin Seo, junior, had a lot to say about her time in highschool.

“My overall high school experience has been great. It’s been really fun and entertaining and has given me a lot of new opportunities to reach out to a lot of new people,” Seo said.

One of the opportunities she seized was founding a cup stacking club, but her extracurriculars don’t stop there; she’s the Student Body President. Seo said she loves extracurriculars because you can meet new people that you wouldn’t normally. However, with extracurriculars, it’s hard to stay on top of your school work. Seo is very experienced in that field; she has to balance several AP classes and other activities.   

“I have learned how important time management is and prioritizing what you need to do, with what needs to get done now and what needs to get done later,” Seo said. She has grown a lot and looks forward to the upcoming years.

Emily Stubbs, senior, has transformed through high school.

“I have definitely gotten a lot less shy. During middle school and freshman year, I was super shy, but now I don’t really care,” Stubbs said.

She’s had a really good experience with school spirit, elaborating that it’s been really fun to go to school events and football games.  Furthermore, Stubbs is very involved, but she is the most known for theater.

“My friends are what started my theater career. My older friends have always encouraged me to take different classes and stuff like that,” Stubbs said.

Stubbs’s family has also helped her become what she is now.      

“My parents have been supportive of me in not taking all AP classes and having a good mix and supporting me in choir, theater, and student council,” Stubbs said.

She has had an amazing four years of high school filled with good times. It’s the end and the beginning of an era, as it is for all students, from freshmen to seniors.