Growing and Changing

By Nicole Plutz

Four years may seem like a long period of time, but if you ask any of the seniors they will tell you that the four years in high school go by a lot quicker than one may think. As many would have thought the senior class was nervous but excited to start their freshman year of high school. We knew some of the aspects that would be popping into our lives, such as Friday night football games and a larger amount of school work to do, but what we didn’t know was how each of these things would impact who we have grown into being today. In the midst of all of the craziness of high school, many forget to take a step back and look at how their time in high school has shaped them into who they are today. It has been proven that the way one changes in high school impacts who they will become later in life. This couldn’t be more true for the class of 2018.

Over the past four years, all of the seniors have changed in one way or another through their experiences. All of us have not only grown academically, but also in many different aspects of our lives.

We have pushed ourselves to take our learning to the next level and take it into our own hands in order to prepare ourselves for what we will take on as we leave high school. Now, we will hear from four fellow seniors that shared how their time at LCHS has changed them and also helped to develop them into who they are today.

We all need to grow into our own person in order to find out who we are and what we want to be. Lexi Halase has done just this throughout her time in high school. She has grown as an individual and has prepared herself for life after high school. By taking high level classes, such as AP and college courses offered through the high school as well as local colleges, Lexi has been able to get ahead of the game from the beginning of high school to end of her time as a high school student. This has allowed her to feel prepared for the next step of college because of how she has challenged herself to take her learning into her own hands. As she looks back on her time in high school Lexi states that she is very happy with what she has accomplished these last four years.  

Olivia Hermsen has grown as a leader during her four years of high school which helped her to also become more outgoing. She stated that she owes all of this to being involved in sports and clubs within our school. Olivia is involved in three sports as well as many different clubs which have played a vital role in allowing her to become a great leader in all of her activities. Her advice to the freshman class is, “If I could recommend one thing to incoming freshman, it would be to join extracurricular activities because they are fun and a great way to get involved.”

“Thanks to sports, clubs, and Little Chute High School in general, I have gained leadership skills and confidence.” Megan Lonigro is another senior that feels that the four years in high school go by a lot faster than you think, so all of us need to make sure we make the most of that time. She has also grown as a person from her freshman year to her senior year as result of her elaborating in many different clubs and sports.

Charlie Coenen’s high school career has been a roller coaster ride. He has learned just as much in the classroom as he has outside of it about himself. “Over the years here, I have really matured, grown as a person, learned more about myself, and learned some values,” Charlie explained when asked what he thought the most important part of his time in high school was. His freshman year, Charlie was terrified to do things such as volunteer and take on foreign situations that he didn’t know much about. Now, he is more than willing to volunteer and put himself into new situations that will allow him to gain experience in order to learn more about the field of study his wishes to pursue in college. One of the most important changes that Charlie has made during his time here at LCHS is that he has allowed himself to grow into a hard worker who is responsible in all aspects of his life. He states that he gives LCASD credit for making him into the person that he is today.

All of the seniors have changed in one way or another as we traveled through LCHS. Our growth included challenging ourselves to be the best we could, finding who we truly are, and learning to celebrate our accomplishments along the way. One thing that has alway stuck in the minds of many of us seniors is to try new things while in high school and to get out of our comfort zones, so that we don’t have the “I wish I would’ve done that” moments after we begin the rest of our lives. We sure didn’t expect our time in high school to fly by as quickly as did, but we enjoyed the ride that it took us on.