got back on track’ since

Transferring to Martin during her freshman year, senior Cami Cortinas had a bit of a rough start. Cortinas went to Turning Point twice during her eighth grade year and wanted to “get away from that” as she came to Martin, but it didn’t really go as planned when she fell into the wrong crowd.

“I met this one girl on the second day, and it was this girl I knew from Turning Point,” Cotinas said. “From there, I started hanging out with that group of friends. It wasn’t the best group. They were always being bad and doing things that we hate now, like being ignorant in the hallway and stuff like that. Then three weeks into school, I got into a fight. I ended up getting arrested from school.”

During her sophomore year, school was virtual, due to Covid. This gave Cortinas a chance to refocus her life.

“It was a time away from being near all these people,” Cortinas said. “They weren’t really influencing me, so I was figuring myself out. When we came back to school, I had a whole new mindset. I wanted to get myself together. I got into AVID. For eleventh grade, I got into Student Council and kind of just got back on track.”

Even after going through change, it can be hard not to fall back into old habits.

Cortinas said she tries to focus on the future she wants to stay on the course she has set.

“There are some times when you just want to stop from the hard things that come,” Cortinas said. “You got to think, if I stop being on the track that I’m on, what will it get me back to.”

Like many incoming freshmen, senior Astrid Tyler said she struggled her freshman year due to the increased workload from her high school courses.

“I didn’t realize how much work high school was actually going to be,” Tyler said. “School was super easy up until then, so it took learning to schedule my time better and actually finding good study methods. I grew up a lot freshman year.”

While learning to balance school work, Tyler added learning to balance a job and marriage, after she became engaged during her junior year.

“I work part time on top of school full time and being a wife,” Tyler said. “I have another person to take care of and more on my plate. I am definitely more of an adult then I was then. It’s a lot to do, but it’s super rewarding. I’ve learned a lot about myself and who I really am.”

Through her four years of trying to juggle all aspects of her life, Tyler said she has gained a new understanding of what’s most important.

“I learned that what people think about you doesn’t matter,” Tyler said. “You have to do what you love and enjoy every minute, because it only lasts for so long. You can only do so much, do what you can and learn to say no. Most importantly, it’s okay to not be okay. Cry sometimes, it’s good for you, but get back up strong and face the day head on.”

On top of gaining a new outlook, Tyler has gained a partner to help her continue to find balance in her life.

“No matter what comes, I know I have my best friend to take on life with,” Tyler said. “We will see where it goes, because the future is never certain, just live in the moment while you have it.”

Beginning her time in high school, senior Cindy Sanders said she suffered with lack of motivation for school work.

“I was pretty unmotivated,” Sanders said. “I didn’t really have any clear goals.”

As she began focusing on a clear goal, Sanders started to become more dedicated to school work.

“I think having a clear goal for yourself is a very good way to stay on track,” Sanders said. “I think that I’ve kind of grown to realize that in the end, I really only have myself so I’m just working towards the end goal of being successful.”

Sanders has taken this new motivation and started participating more in school.

She now is one of the vice presidents for Psi Alpha, in AVID, and works on the literary magazine.

“I got really into school over the course of high school,” Sanders said. “I got really into my extracurriculars and grades. It has kept me motivated. Now I have a pretty clear career path. Whenever I found out what I wanted to do, that helped direct me.”