Sandwiched between two glittery, cheaply-constructed covers of a Justice brand diary lies my future. At least, that’s what I believed when I was seven. I’ve had the same best friend since I was...

If you’ve ever seen me walking in the hallways, you’ve probably noticed something consistent about me: I’m always wearing gear from one team, the Northwestern Wildcats. Northwestern athletics have...

There is little that I remember about my first day of high school, but I am certain of how it started. It was, certainly, very similar to anyone else’s first day of a new journey: I stood in front of...

Before we knew about Common App, and what a good weighted GPA was, before college was the end goal and main focus driving us to the finish line, there was high school to romanticize. Throughout middle...

For as long as I can remember, I have been weird about music. When I was a kid, my parents used to threaten to take away my music privileges instead of dessert; I have a very vivid memory of my mom sneaking...

1,141. That’s how many hours I slept during school last year. That’s approximately 6.135 hours a night, two hours less than the recommended sleep time for teens. And as I scaffold for data from my...

My whole life, I wanted high school to be like the movies. I dreamed of dancing in the hallways like Troy and Gabriella, having a wardrobe like Cher and watching drama unfold from the Regina George’s...

I am sure many of you will have heard the words “high school will either be the best or worst four years of your life.” I certainly have, and it seems to be a common belief with older generations....

Innocence is the idealistic yet intangible concept every parent hopes to preserve in their child by shielding their children from the realities of our toxic world. If you asked any adult to identify the...

I think it's obvious from my smorgasbord of senior column ideas that I've loved a lot of different parts of high school. So much more has happened in 4 years than I ever could have imagined on my first...

As I approach Soldier Field on a frigid winter day, I feel a lovely sense of deja vu. I've been coming to Bears games since I was seven years old, just as my parents and even grandparents did. I pass by...

I’ve always had a love for animals. Growing up, I would spend hours watching Animal Planet, captivated by the lives of arctic animals. A memorable image for me will always be polar bears. Seeing them...