Counselor’s Corner

As the end of the school year approaches, CHS counselors discuss how best to end the year strong and what seniors should be preparing for.

BY VEDHA KAKARLA

As we near the end of the school year and the beginning of summer break, CHS counselors Kelly Maveal and Brian Williams are encouraging students to finish off the school year strong. Maveal is hoping that students will prioritize their academics now so that they aren’t stressed out at the end of the school year.

“It’s important to get your assignments and missing work turned into your classes right now because the end of the school year is going to be a really fun and event-filled time and we want our students to be able to celebrate and enjoy the present without having a looming cloud of stress regarding school work over them,” Maveal said.

While academics are important, Williams is also encouraging students to look forward to the summer. He stresses the importance of finding balance during the time off from school.

“Go for a hike, visit a lake, sleep in, hang out and connect with your friends and family,” Williams said. “Make sure you do things to keep a good balance. You can do academic programs and college prep programs but use the break as a time to refuel and not focus so heavily on school.”

Maveal and Williams hope that seniors take full advantage of the last couple of months of their high school careers. Though it can be a challenge, their biggest piece of advice for seniors is to live in the present and soak in every moment. Whether it’s going to college, taking a gap year or getting a job, don’t worry so much about the future because high school will be over before you know it.

Looking ahead to the end of the school year, seniors should expect to receive more details surrounding the big night of graduation.

“There will be several more senior meetings where we’ll be rolling out information to seniors about the big finale which is graduation,” Maveal said. “Hopefully each senior will earn their high school diploma on the stage during that special night.”

In Forum Council, we understand the importance of culture and tradition within CHS. Throughout the year, Fo-Co has been working on several initiatives to rebuild and improve these aspects of CHS. However, there’s been one underlying problem — a broken foundation.

Although Fo-Co has put forth several initiatives to improve CHS, the foundations on which they have been built are not strong enough to support them. As the council kept working, we had to go deeper to find what was damaged. COVID-19 fundamentally changed the culture within CHS and how we interact with the world and, in turn, this institution.

Forum Council leadership has been discussing how to navigate this changed environment and best implement change. The council decided that the best course of action is to craft a new five-year plan to maintain consistent goals that don’t depend on a single person. One of the problems we are facing is that progress made by the previous presidents is lost because the following council doesn’t understand and can’t maintain any of the initiatives made by the prior administrations. This five-year plan aims to create a consistent agenda that will maintain meaningful change within CHS.

Another major agenda item for Fo-Co in this final semester is Commstock. Preparations are already on the way and it’s set to be a lovely afternoon of music, food and fun. There are plans for live music, an art exhibition and maybe even a food truck. It’s a time to unwind and meet new people.