By Kate Childs
The senior class of 2018 will soon be moving forward from their high school careers and onto bigger and better things, and next year the juniors will be the new leaders of the pack. Junior year is usually the year when students start preparing their grades for college and take rigorous AP courses in order to show colleges that they are able to work efficiently in a college class. But junior year can be extremely difficult as most students are anxious to become seniors, and some require extra motivation to do well.
Jema Aldridge is one of the many juniors that have been working hard towards her success in school, but she definitely knows that the struggle is real. “The senioritis is so real for me already,” Aldridge said. “By senior year I just feel like you’re just so done with high school and you’re ready to move on and go your own way.”
Juniors are faced with the immense stress and workload of AP or dual enrollment classes, which makes junior year the hardest year for most students. Aldridge agrees that this has been an extremely challenging year for her. “I do feel like this has been the hardest year for me,” she said. “This is my first year taking AP classes, but I feel like I’ve lived up to the challenge.” But the AP classes aren’t the only thing on juniors minds.
“I know that the choices I make in high school can definitely impact my future,” Aldridge said. “But I feel like I have made the right choices, so I feel pretty good about it.” As the juniors reach the end of the school year, their anticipation grows as they know they are soon going to be released from the hardships of difficult classes. “I feel ready to graduate,” Jema Aldridge said. “I’m not sure which colleges I’m going to apply to yet, but I know wherever I end up in the next few years I’ll be doing just fine.”
The junior class has many exciting things ahead of them other than being seniors. They can look forward to college, working towards a career, and a life full of exciting opportunities. “I’m not scared of the future at all,” Aldridge said. “Whatever is meant to happen will happen.”