Photo courtesy of Isabel Hicks, The Plaid Press

By Isabel Hicks

High school is a maze of challenges and changes, both personal and academic. In high school, we begin to find ourselves and our people and discover where we belong in the world.

However, this discovery is a scary transition, and we begin the era of milestones, where we enter and graduate high school as fundamentally different people.

Each year, we welcome a batch of fresh-faced young freshmen and watch as they navigate the crowded halls of high school. Full of excitement that is both refreshing and inspiring, the freshmen look toward their time here at Granada Hills Charter (GHC) with hope.

This year’s freshmen are especially excited for their high school experience.

“The thing I’m most excited about for high school is the activities we’re able to do,” said freshman Sergio Barillos.

He hopes to play for the school’s baseball team next year. When he imagines his senior self, he describes himself as a “successful entrepreneur,” and wants his senior self to remember all his friends from freshman year.

For freshman Alyssa Vazquez, she’s most excited about meeting new people and making new friends. “I’ve already made a new friend group, and I’m really happy about that,” she said. “Everyone is super nice, and I love all my classes and teachers.”

The high school events she’s most excited about are the Homecoming Dance and Spirit Week.
Fast forward to three years later, the once innocent and energetic freshmen have evolved into more mature well-rounded individuals and students.

“I think the most important part of high school is branching out, and trying new things,” said senior Hrach Nersisyan. “I think it’s important to explore yourself in high school, to see what kind of experiences stick with you and apply those to new passions.”

Juggling new activities can be difficult at times, as many students struggle with time management, particularly in their early years of high school.

“Over the past four years, I’ve become more organized,” said senior Lauren Welsh. “I’ve finally gotten to a point where I can manage all my classes and I’m not stressed out all the time. It gets easier every year.”

Although high school can be stressful, there are many rewarding experiences that have come with hard work.

“The most rewarding experience for me in high school was when the Chamber Choir took a trip to San Diego last year for a competition,” said Welsh. “We ended up getting third place gold, which was a huge accomplishment for everyone because we worked so hard the whole year.”

If Nersisyan could give the freshmen any piece of advice, he would tell them, “Don’t stress out about your grades too much, because it’s definitely important to keep them up, but I think it’s also important to prioritize having a social life and not devoting 100% of yourself to your academics.”

It’s important to understand the balance between your personal and academic lives because you’ll only burn yourself out if you overwork yourself in school. Don’t just lose yourself in academics, because high school is about discovering who you are as a person as much as it is about discovering who you are as a student.

Enjoy your high school memories and friends, and make the best of your four years here at GHC, because before you know it, you’ll be standing in a cap and gown, moving your tassel from right to left. And just like that, beginning the next chapter of your life.