Junior doubles classes in one semester to graduate early
An out of state move pushes Bell to finish the graduating requirements
Junior Jacqui Bell works on government through Plato in English teacher Dawn Fowerbaughs room.
January 17, 2018
When junior Jacqui Bell learned she was moving to Chicago after her mom had been offered a new job, she had to make a hard decision to leave her friends behind and graduate early.
Needing only 4 more credits on top of the ones being taken currently, she and her parents decided to have her earn those credits this year so she could graduate early.
Bell’s mom and little sister are leaving mid-January to go live in Chicago, but Bell and her father will stay behind, putting their house up for sale in March and living in an apartment until the end of this school year.
“It’s all happening really fast, and it’s hard for me to wrap my head around it,” Bell said. “I came in as a junior and now I’m leaving as a senior.”
With having to rearrange her schedule to include English 12, Government and Economics, her workload has been increased. Bell has to write “twice the amount of papers,” and says she sometimes finds it hard to take in, but also finds comfort in being around her friends.
“I’m trying to hang out with a lot of my friends as much as possible,” Bell said. “(Because) we won’t have the same schedule. I’ll be going into college, and I won’t see them everyday.”
Her mom Andrea Bell said the decision was made between the two of them after they looked at the graduation requirements of Illinois and what she would need to take in order to graduate in 2019. According to Andrea, Bell would only have to take three classes in Illinois along with another semester-long class required by the state. Making a joint decision, they decided to instead have Jacqui end the current academic year as a senior. Afterwards they would try and see if she could either attend a four year college or go to a two year college to finish the core requirements, attending a four-year college the next school year.
Andrea mentions that while she is a little saddened that Bell doesn’t get to experience the stereotypical senior year, such as senior pictures, she thinks Bell will look back and appreciate the extra year she had..
“I think in the long run, it’s an advantage for her,” Andrea said. “But yeah, I feel sorry for her that she kind of missed out on half a year of senior year.”
