Our 2025 Pitman school year is coming to an end. During this time, students from each grade take this time to reflect and plan their future. To wrap things up I decided to interview each grade level on their perspective on this year.
First I interviewed freshman Kingston Walton and asked, “How was your first year of high school?” to which he replied, “It was fun, it was better than middle school. It was really fun”.. I followed up with, “Was it anything like you thought?” and he said, “No, they all said it’d be harder and a lot of stuff would be different and a lot of homework but I think I had way less homework than I did in middle school” I also asked if he thought if it was overstressed for nothing, “Yeah, cause I mean it was a bit harder but they said it was gonna be way harder than it actually was but I think that’s just what they say to make people prepared.”
I also asked who was your favorite teacher this year? “Probably Mrs Machado, I’ve had her since seventh grade but I still like her because she’s super nice and it’s my favorite class.” Lastly, I asked what his goals are for next year? “Probably do more stuff when it’s like early on because i really struggle for that”.This freshmen was very excited to share their experiences, and added that with preparation, high-school isn’t as bad as their peers and adults believed them to be. He had a very fulfilling and academically achieving year and is excited to see what next year has in store for him, now that he is familiar with the environment.
Then I interviewed sophomores Amaya Singh and Landen Neal. Starting with Amaya, I asked her, how was your sophomore year? To which she replied, “It was very good, better than freshman year.” Then I asked, How was it different from freshman year? “I’m much more involved and i’m not like saying anything is boring and I’m having much more fun since I’m not injured.” I also wanted to know if she thought there was more pressure? “A little if you picked really hard classes like I did, I put in a lot of effort which made it a breeze for me.” My last question was “What are you excited for next year?”; “A lot harder classes that I’m more interested in (APs) and they are actually gonna mean something to my career when I’m older.”
Amaya Singh shared her honest opinion of her Sophomore year, next is Landen Neal and his sophomore year; “How was your sophomore year?” to which he replied “It was easier than my freshman year. I had friends in all my classes so that made it fun. I liked the teachers I have now and sports are more fun.”. A goal of Landen’s was to stay above a 4.0. I finally asked him, “Going into sophomore year, did you feel like your freshman teachers prepared you enough?”
“My freshman year teachers were harder than 8th grade so it got me back into school making this year easier” Speaking for sophomores, Both had different experiences and views of this year but overall agreed that it was better than freshman year.
Then I interviewed junior Mason Helwick and asked how he feels about getting a new football coach? “I feel good about it because I feel like I trust him and I know him and I like that he’s our coach now. Mr. Reza was a nice person and I really liked him as well.”
Then I asked “ Do you think this’ll help you guys get a better record than last year?” He replied, “Yea, 100% cause what we were doing we been more locked in, doing a lot more work than off season.”
I also asked what his opinion on junior year and what could’ve gone better, “Lots of work, you gotta be more attentive. Football seasons going better, it would have made it better but I’m excited for it next year.” I also asked “Do you think this year prepared you for senior year?”. “Yes for sure there were lots of downs, but in the end they helped me keep going”. For juniors, it is deeply stigmatized that junior year is the “worst” year of high school, mainly with the academic pressure. Our pitman juniors arose from those struggles and prospered through it. On their minds right now, is their last year of high school coming up.
And lastly I interviewed a senior, Evelyn Soto. “What’s your opinion on senior year ?
“Honestly it’s been a very fun year, it’s been my best year in highschool, i’ve had the most fun and a lot more experiences that have ultimately made it really good but it does get sad towards the end because I keep thinking that I have to leave all my pals that are younger than me, it’s very sad.”
Then I inquired, “What are your plans for after high school? I plan on going to MJC and then I also plan on starting a lil’ side business making treats; I also plan to study abroad in Spain.” Then I asked, “Who’s your favorite teacher?” “Oscar Mercado because he’s always been super supportive and always tells us to reach for our goals and he knows how to make you laugh even if you’re having a bad day, anything he does makes you smile, and he understands.”
Lastly I asked “What was your best memory this year?” and she replied, Homecoming was really fun. The fact that I even got nominated was a good experience; doing the dress up days having that privilege being up there was really fun.” As you can tell, this school-year was extremely successful. Our freshmen were very welcomed and quickly adapted to highschool. As for our sophomores, their ambition has heightened, same for our juniors who are preparing themselves for a bittersweet, senior year.