As my fourth year of high school is coming to an end, I am looking back on my days at West Morris Central. Although I am excited to graduate and move on to new things, I am also deeply saddened by the great friends and teachers that I am leaving behind. That being said, I am excited to share some advice on how to make your years at WMC extraordinary. I cannot wait to take what I learned at WMC and apply it to the real world.

To the freshman, your first year at WMC is definitely a transition. The upperclassmen are intimidating, the classes are challenging, and the wake up call is a pain. At the same time, freshman year was also one of the greatest times of my life. Getting involved in sports, clubs, and finding new friends is very exciting. Freshman year is a time to explore your interests, have fun, and live life free of stress. If I could go back and change anything about my first year, I would have definitely tried a bit harder in my classes. My GPA freshman year in comparison to my GPA as an upperclassmen shows great improvement, and I wish I could have started high school on a stronger note. Have fun, but also focus on school. I was under the impression that my freshman year wasn’t all that important in terms of grades, but it is. Try new things, challenge yourself in the classroom, and start fresh!

Sophomore year is the year when things start to settle with who your friends are, what sports you plays, clubs you’re involved in, and where you are academically. At the same time, sophomore year can also be a time when your friend group changes. In that case, don’t worry, it’s completely normal. You also take classes that are a bit more difficult than those of freshman year. Hold on! You are in the middle, but you are soon going to be an underclassmen. Enjoy your years as an underclassmen, keep trucking in your classes, and continue to experiment with friend groups and clubs. End on a high note, and get prepared for junior year. Junior year is the most demanding of them all, and you should definitely enjoy your freedom during sophomore year.

As stated previously, junior year consists of stress from standardized testing. Between the SATs, ACT testing, HSPAs, AP/IB testing, college searching, and necessity of decent grades, junior has infamously earned the title of “most difficult year” of them all. It is stressful to be on top of your grades, play sports, perform in the theatre, play an instrument, spend time with friends, and take tests that predict where you will go in life. Although it is difficult, you’ll get through it. With hard times come fun times, and junior year was a blast. It felt incredibly rewarding to succeed and be proud of what you accomplished at the end of junior year. Definitely make time to work hard, so at the end of the year, you know that you gave it your all. Don’t forget to always focus on the light at the end of the tunnel…senior year!

Good luck to all of the WMC students, and always know that when it comes time for you to say goodbye, you’ll be prepared to make your life extraordinary.
-Rebecca Weippert