As the third trimester begins and the end of the school year grows ever closer, seniors are looking back on their years at City High and remembering what they’ve done and how they’ve changed. From the past four years, seniors want to share what they’ve learned as they move on to the next chapter of their lives.

The Little Hawk: What’s the biggest thing you’ve learned in high school?

Jake Roth ‘22: This is the time to explore opportunities and yourself. I’ve learned to not hold back and to do what you think you should do. If you think you should try out for the musical but you’re not sure, but you kind of want to, just do it anyway.

Ruth Meehan ‘22: The things that you think are a really big deal in the moment actually aren’t when you look back on it. Take a risk, no regrets, just go for it.

Lucy Corbin ‘22: I learned to try out as many things as possible, just to see what you like and what you don’t like. If you don’t like it, you learn something about yourself. You learn from the process.

Abbie Thomas ‘22: I learned time management and how to build relationships with people you don’t know.

Vince Johnson ‘22: Grades don’t matter as much as you think they do. Be active in activities, you won’t regret it.

Nathalie Nunez ‘22: The biggest thing I’ve learned is that people can switch up really quickly and you should stay 100% to yourself.

Kimberly Marquez ‘22: I’ve learned to love Pitbull throughout high school.

Parker Max ‘22: The mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell.

The Little Hawk: What surprised you the most about high school?

Renzo Gonzalez ‘22: Probably how not intimidating it is and how inclusive everybody is. When I first came in, I thought, ‘it’s gonna be difficult’ and I mean, for some people it is. But really everybody here is nice, the teachers and the staff.

Vince Johnson ‘22: What surprised me the most was unexpected friendships.

Lucy Corbin ‘22: It’s not like High School Musical. There are no cliques. I guess everyone’s just insecure about themselves. People do not look like adults in high school. They still look like middle schoolers.

Helena Brown-Rodriguez ‘22: There’s less judgment than I thought there would be. I expected it to be so serious and so cliquey and there are groups of people that do the same things, but in general, people at City High are a lot more open than I expected them to be. 

Harper O’Brien ‘22: The thing that surprised me the most is just how much fun it is. I think I was expecting it to be very stressful, which at times it can be but, honestly, I would do it all over again just for the fun memories.

Kimberly Marquez ‘22: The fights, and how our class was so close sophomore year and then we separated, it fluctuates a lot.

Averi Loria ‘22: How much my friend group changed.

Abbie Thomas ‘22: It’s not like High School Musical.

Ruth Meehan ‘22: Something that you think could be not that big of a deal to someone else actually could have a very large impact. So going out of your way to make someone smile or do something nice for someone else really makes an impact.

The Little Hawk: What would you change about high school?

Ruth Meehan ‘22: Well, I wouldn’t put a global pandemic right in the middle of it.

Abbie Thomas ‘22: I probably would have gotten involved in more activities. I would have auditioned for more things like in the music department.

Averi Loria ‘22: I would have done show choir and more art classes.

Kimberly Marquez ‘22: I would have done a business class.

Vince Johnson ‘22: COVID.

Lucy Corbin ‘22: I would not stress out so much about grades. I know obviously you want to have good grades, but I definitely spent way too much time on trying to get the perfect grade when I’ll forget about it in two months.

The Little Hawk: What do you regret about high school?

Jake Roth ‘22: I regret stressing so much over the little things. A little assignment or something like that.

Harper O’Brien ‘22: I just regret caring what people think.

Georgia Kimm ‘22: What I regret most is not making as many friends until junior and senior year.

Vince Johnson ‘22: Trying so hard freshman and sophomore year.

Helena Brown-Rodriguez ‘22: I regret not focusing enough on school stuff. It’s good to have the social stuff, you really don’t have to put 100% of your time into schoolwork, but you want to make sure to find a good balance to actually feel like you’re doing well.

Ruth Meehan ‘22: I wish I would have gone out and tried something out of my comfort zone. I think that I tried a lot of stuff within my kind of music branch. I wish I would have branched out a little bit more.

Kimberly Marquez ‘22: I regret not doubling up on math my sophomore year, not using the core electives wisely, and I also regret taking the ACT late.

Averi Loria ‘22: I regret not looking into colleges sooner, taking the ACT, and not branching out when it comes to friend groups sooner.

Nathalie Nunez ‘22: I regret not trying more clubs and sports.

The Little Hawk: What would you tell an incoming freshman?

Jake Roth ‘22: The biggest thing is to just be yourself and just go for it. Do what you think you should do. Be kind to other people. Be yourself and try your best and you’ll be fine.

Renzo Gonzalez ‘22: Do not see high school as intimidating. Just try to be out there, explore, hang out with new people. Just ask for help. Don’t stress out too much. Because there’s always going to be people there to help you and support you.

Lucy Corbin ‘22: PDA is not okay at school. Please do not do it. There are only really ugly boys. No hot ones.

Ethan Goodrich ‘22: An advanced class isn’t worth taking unless you’re passionate about the subject.

Helena Brown-Rodriguez ‘22: Don’t put too much pressure on yourself. I feel like a lot of people think that high school is gonna be everything. And it’s not. It’s a big part of you, but what comes afterwards is even more important. Just go through these four years and do what you can to make them four good years, but don’t put too much pressure on yourself to become the person that you want to be your whole life. You have time for that.

Ruth Meehan ‘22: Every class every day on time, #stopunexcusedabsences. Also go out for theater. 

Lucy Corbin ‘22: Go in the right way in the hallway. Park in the right parking lot. Don’t run in the hallways. I see these freshmen, they’re just like, on a mission. No, just calm down.

Abbie Thomas ‘22: To get involved in as much as you can. Because you can always quit things you don’t like and you should always just start early and join so you can make more friends and family.

Vince Johnson ‘22: Just have fun.