As the school year comes to a close, I had a conversation via email with senior Carly Roberts, who is involved in Student Council, Principal’s Cabinet, National Honors Society, and Math Honors Society.

I started off by asking Carly what she was looking forward to after graduation and her plans for after high school. She told me that she is excited to spend the summer with her friends and family. She is planning to go to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and is going to major in health science, so that she can pursue a career as a speech pathologist. I then asked her what she is going to miss about Lincoln-Way West, and she replied, “I am going to miss Friday night football games in the student section cheering on the football team and dressing up for the themes.” There is something incredible about being in the stands with your peers and cheering on your team. It is an amazing experience. When I asked Carly about her favorite memories at West, she told me she told me that her favorite memory is “all the homecoming dances and junior year homecoming Olympics when my team made it to the third round of tug a war.” Participating in events like that has always been an exciting part high school. Then I asked her about her favorite teacher. She said, “All my teachers have been amazing, I would not be able to pick a favorite. The Lincoln-Way West staff is amazing, and I am grateful for every one of my teachers.”

The school year is coming to a close, but we are still in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. I asked what Carly thought about it, and she replied, “COVID-19 has affected my senior year because due to hybrid scheduling, I was unable to go to school with some of my friends. Luckily, I made sure to see all of them outside of school. On the bright side, this strange COVID-19 school year has made it a senior year that I will never forget.” She also said that she was looking forward to the senior events the school is planning for the rest of the year. She said that she is “excited to spend the next few weeks celebrating the class of 2021 because it has truly been a crazy year for us.”

This year has certainly been a crazy one, but the senior class has pulled through. Congratulations, Carly Roberts, and the entire class of 2021!