NESPA Winner: Editorial, 2022

The Graphic, Amherst-Pelham Regional High School, Amherst, MA

I rarely feel like a senior. For me, and the rest of the class of 2022, the pandemic stole the latter half of our sophomore year and the vast majority of our junior year.

Fortunately, my class didn’t have it as bad, as we didn’t graduate through the height of the pandemic, and we got to skip MCAS. Now, we’re a quarter of the way through our first normal year since 9th grade, and unlike the last two classes, we’re on track to have a fairly normal senior year.

But, I have to say, it is weird realizing my only normal years at ARHS were at the beginning and end, the bookends if you will. The fact that the pandemic unmoored our middle years from the traditional structure of high school makes them unique.

The experience I gained throughout my four years, I gained my own way, and what I’ve learned both before and during the pandemic has helped me a lot.

So what have I learned in my time at ARHS? What musings would I share? What advice would I give to new students on my way out?

From my very first day at ARHS, I knew for certain that I didn’t belong to any one group. You may feel like that, too.

Read the full story here.