MOBILE COUNTY, Alabama — With the Mobile County school system’s dozen high schools back in session and Saraland City Schools following close behind, seniors across the area are settling into a final year filled with leadership roles, marching band responsibilities, football season and, for many, the first serious steps toward choosing a college.
Murphy High School’s IB seniors eye Ivy League and beyond
At Murphy High School’s International Baccalaureate program, one senior said he is most looking forward to finally seeing four years of hard work pay off, along with the small perk of leaving campus early during the last week of school. Active in Key Club, band, tennis and student government, he is hoping for admission to a Northeastern university and plans to study biological sciences. A classmate who serves as brass captain in the marching band said her focus this year is leading fellow section members while also managing her own nerves about leaving home for college, where she hopes to study neurology and pathology at a West Coast or Colorado school. Both said staying organized and avoiding procrastination were the best advice they had for incoming freshmen.
Saraland’s Psychos and Spartans savor one last season
At Saraland High School, part of the separate Saraland City Schools district, one senior said cheering with the school’s rowdy student fan section, known as the Saraland Psychos, at football games ranks among her favorite parts of senior year, even as she gets emotional about eventually leaving teachers she has grown close to. She plans to study education for the deaf after discovering the field while volunteering with Special Olympics athletes. A football teammate, a safety on the Spartans squad, said he is most looking forward to the traditional senior dinner and a strong final season, and hopes to earn a scholarship to study sports medicine in college.
MGM senior points to leadership program and homecoming week
At Mary G. Montgomery High School, a senior involved in soccer, cross-country and a local youth soccer club said he is most excited about the school’s student leadership program, which has seniors design and carry out their own community service projects, along with the theme days and parade that come with homecoming week. He plans to study physical therapy and athletic training in college and encouraged incoming freshmen to talk with teachers and counselors early to find clubs and activities that fit their interests.
A shared season of transition
Across the three school communities, the seniors described this year with a similar mix of pride and nerves: eagerness for long-awaited leadership roles and traditions, paired with real anxiety about leaving behind the friends, teachers and routines that have defined their high school years. Several urged younger students not to take their remaining time for granted, saying the freedom and responsibility of senior year is worth working toward from day one.