by: Samarah Guy  

As they finish their high school careers, GS seniors are spending plenty of time celebrating and taking in their last year, while also preparing for life after high school.  

Seniors get to take part in memorable activities like “Senior Sunrise” and “Senior Sunset” along with painting their parking spots in the student lot.   

“Events like Senior Sunrise helped me bond with people I haven’t had the chance to spend time with while also helping me make my senior year as memorable as possible,” senior Alaysia Tarpley said. 

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The Senior class pose as a group at the senior sunrise.

Photo courtesy: gslionssca of Instagram.

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These parts of senior year make a big impact on students because it gives them the chance to spend time together before they all go their separate ways. These activities are rewarding for all the time, hard work and effort the seniors have put into school throughout the past four years.  

“I think the events get us in the mindset that we’re actually graduating, and we should make the most of the time we have left in high school; both academically and socially,” senior Ellie Swanson said.  

Although these activities can be fun and exciting, seniors must still focus on senior projects and preparing for life after high school.  

“I think it’s all about learning how to balance school, work and having fun outside of that,” Swanson said. “I’ve had a pretty heavy workload all four years of high school, but I’ve spent a little more time being social and found that it’s much needed.”  

Senior projects are a vital part of senior year as it’s a graduation requirement that takes a lot of time and effort throughout the year. Senior projects are independent because there is no class time for them, which helps the seniors learn good time management.  

Students also have to start looking into scholarships for college, joining the military or finding a pathway significant to them.  

“You need to research colleges and find what is best for you like courses for your major, what environment you want to be in and what scholarships you can get,” she said. 

This can be a hard year for some people because they don’t know what they want to do yet, but taking a gap year can always be in the picture.  

Taking a gap year can help relieve stress, and it gives students the chance to sit down and really understand what it is they want to do and how they’re going to do it. This time could also be a time to explore new places and new things outside of what one grew up around. 

“Preparing for life after high school is different for everybody, and there’s no right way to do it until you’re sure you know what you want to do,” senior Azzy Franklin said.