Curing senioritis: Class of ’17 to graduate 42
Staff writer
It is that insane time of year again, when high school seniors battle a mysterious phenomenon called “senioritis” as they prepare to uproot and to seek out their respective dreams and paths.
“Senioritis is very, very real, and I have yet to find the cure,” Marion senior Paige May said. “Symptoms are lack of motivation, tiredness, restlessness, agitation and a whole bunch of stress.”
As one of five Marion High School, valedictorians Paige could find a cure for senioritis someday. She plans to major in clinical laboratory science at Kansas State University.
Shelby Felvus, who ultimately plans to major in physical therapy at Wichita State University after attending Hutchinson Community College, experienced another form of senioritis.
“Oddly enough I was really relaxed this semester, which was probably my form of senioritis because usually I am stressing about big assignments and what not,” Shelby said. “But I never ‘didn’t care’ like the stigma with senioritis holds; I really probably cared too much at times!”
Shelby said participating in sports makes this time of year more hectic than it already is. Towards the end of April, she got antsy and almost became overwhelmed with how many things she needed to complete in a month’s time.
Preferring to “get work done early and relax later instead of putting it off,” Shelby may have discovered an experimental treatment for some forms of senioritis.
“The only cure I can think of is to use your time wisely,” Shelby said. “Give yourself time to have fun and to let loose so that you can buckle down and focus when you need to.”
Paige and Shelby, along with Marion’s other valedictorians —Aidan Cairns, Cade Harms, and Taylor May — and salutatorian Shonda Ratzloff likely will be dishing out high-fives, hugs, and words of wisdom Saturday at graduation. Each plans to speak during graduation, which starts at 4 p.m. Saturday at Marion Sports and Aquatic Center.
Aidan plans to major in chemical engineering, and Cade will go into mechanical engineering, both at KSU, Taylor will major in nursing at Emporia State University, and Shonda intends major in elementary education at Butler Community College.
Shelby said that many of the 42 students in their class had grade point averages above a 3.5.
“I always aimed to make 4.0 all four years but I’d say I’m more proud of all of us for pushing each other and staying motivated to maintain good grades,” Paige said. “We are competitive with each other but we’re also very encouraging and that’s probably we have five valedictorians.”