By: Bella Minor
High school has been a roller coaster of events and memories! I would have to say that high school is extremely stressful, but it’s not impossible as some people deem it to be. I remember walking into high school freshman year, and not knowing what was going on and being anxious about going to school with a lot of upperclassmen. This anxiety was mixed with pressure including trying to figure out who I would want to become, what extracurriculars I would want to be a part of, what college I want to go to, or what I would want to study. High school academically was difficult because it was a whole new type of learning and choosing harder and challenging classes. Honestly, high school is a place to find who you are, and not care what others think about you. In the end, all that matters is if you like who you are.
I would like to say thank you to all of my teachers that influenced me and helped me find who I was, especially during this time of quarantine. Teachers are a big influence on me, and I want to say thank you to all my teachers throughout my academic career at JCHS. Thank you to all of the departments because each lesson you taught is important and all of your lessons are extremely relevant to the world we live in. I want to single out a few teachers who really got me on track with what I would want to study at college.
First, I would say thank you to the music department specifically, Mrs Timpson. I want to say thank you for giving me a deep love for music and singing, and for encouraging me to try out for the small musical groups. I am sad that it has come to an end like this. It also truly meant a lot to me that you wrote my letter of recommendation for college.
Second, my spanish teacher, Señora Coogan-Rusell. I want to say thank you for everything; you are an amazing teacher. You have shown true strength through everything that you are dealing with and I admire that about you. I’m sad that my senior year for AP Spanish had to end this way, but I’m thankful that I got to be in your class for my last year of high school.
Third, I would like to thank the science department in its entirety for encouraging my love for science. Specifically, I want to thank Mrs. Press, Mrs Renzetti and Mr. Marrone. I want to thank Mr. Marrone for beginning my love in biology because without having him as a teacher, I don’t think I would want to continue studying biology in college. Mrs Renzetti, I would like to thank her for showing great courage and strength with her own struggles in her health. Mrs Press, thank you also for writing my letter of recommendation and enjoying what you taught. AP Biology was a lot of fun because you enjoyed your class just as much as we did.
Lastly, I would also like to thank Detective Mazzeo for everything he has done with aiding the music department’s events. A moment I will never forget his bravery was during the Music Marathon on February 24, 2018 when the event went into lockdown. It was a comfort that you were there that day. In addition, I would like to thank Mr. Bertollo for truly going above and beyond with everything that he has been doing for my senior class to give us some normalcy during this pandemic!
Overall, thank you to JCHS and all of the departments for making these four years memorable and influential. I am majoring in Biology on the Pre- Med track and minoring in Spanish. And although I am not studying music, I will still be a part of any groups for chorus at Fairfield University. It’s because of these teachers that I am excited to meet like-minded people at college and in the subjects I am studying!
