If you stop anyone on the street and ask them which year of high school was their favorite, you will be met with very mixed results. Any number of variables can change somebody’s outlook on a school year, such as the school one went to, the teachers they had, or the friends they were around. There is, however, an obvious year that soars above the rest and demands recognition as the best year of high school.  

“Senior year [is my favorite year], because of the excitement of graduation but also all of the fun opportunities that come along with it,” Hannelore Harman, senior, said. 

The best year, in my opinion, is senior year. The freedom students are provided, the relief of graduation, and the final prom all culminate into the most enjoyable time a student can have in high school. Most students have already earned nearly all of the credits required to graduate, which gives them the opportunity to change up their schedule and choose either interesting electives that they did not have time for previously, dual enroll with a nearby college in order to take next level classes, or work-based learning to start their journey into the workforce. This flexibility allows seniors to specially curate their school year in order to put them in a greater position for their future, which is always more enjoyable than sitting in the same old math class. 

“My favorite year of high school has been my junior year, even though it is not complete. I have met a lot of new people that have made me like school,” Makenna Sewell, junior, said. 

Now that the best year has been established, there is the question of what the worst year of high school is. Sophomore year takes the cake on this one. The step from freshman level classes to challenging courses like Honors Chemistry and AP World is high school’s hardest hurdle and puts an overwhelming amount of pressure on a student. Throw in the facts that a sophomore cannot go to prom, do dual enrollment, and likely will not be driving to school for any significant amount of time, and you are left with very few redeeming factors about sophomore year.  

“Sophomore year was my worst year. I was struggling with my craving for academic validation, and I fell into an unhealthy mindset. I felt stuck in my life, and I was scared everything I was doing was not going to yield anything fruitful,” Lyla Dennis, senior, said. 

Junior and Freshman years are largely just okay. Some say freshman year is the worst because everything is new, and they are the youngest on campus, but the fact is, freshmen have the easiest classes in the school and that puts it leagues ahead of sophomore year. Junior year is just alright: you do not have all the benefits of being a senior just yet, but you are accustomed to the harder classes, and it is a much more reasonable hill to climb. It is, in most cases, the best year up to that point because they have not experienced senior year yet. 

“It was fun meeting new people [Freshman year], but when COVID-19 hit, I was very unproductive,” Carter Mason, senior, said. 

Even though there are clear benefits to some years and many detractors to others, remember that it is just high school, and we are all here to suffer together.