With the 2023-2024 school year coming to an end, seniors are preparing to walk across the stage. Some are getting ready for the college experience while others have different plans. While each senior has made their mark on the school, a few have stood out, like academic leaders Ellie Hance and Lincoln Meyers.
Throughout their time at Kennedy, both Hance and Myers have participated in various activities. Hance has participated in several sports over her four years at Kennedy but two stand out.
“I participated in swim and dive as well as tennis all four years,” Hance said. “I’ve been a part of Best Buddies which is so rewarding as well as organizations such as National Honor Society (NHS) which allow me to give back to the community.”
Myers has participated in multiple activities as well, including basketball, baseball, NHS, student government, kickboxing, weightlifting and Best Buddies.
“Out of these, the two that really stuck with me were baseball and student government,” Myers said. “I’ve played baseball since I was very young and I am so grateful that I’ve gotten the chance to play with all of my same friends from then up until now. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to do student government this year due to my class load, but student government played a very large role in my high school career. It helped me meet more of the upperclassmen when I was an underclassman and allowed me to seek opportunities to help out in my community.”
Hance has a 4.481 GPA and has plans to attend the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland and major in Chemistry. With her plans to attend the Naval Academy, she also plans to continue swimming with their team. With so many plans for the future, Hance has found different ways to cope and balance her academics with her athletic pursuits.
“I’ll leave for basic training on June 27. After the six weeks of basic training school will start and I plan to walk on to the swim team,” Hance said. “I balanced my activities by having awareness about the time each of them took. Understanding how long things are going to take allowed me to prioritize what to work on and allowed me to not get overwhelmed by how much I had on my plate.”
Unfortunately, in the last month Hence has sustained an ACL injury and will be delaying her journey into the military for one year as she heals. But Hance is not the only one with big future plans. Myers has maintained around a 4.5 cumulative GPA and has plans to pursue aerospace engineering at Iowa State University.
“To maintain such high scores, I had to set high standards for myself,” Myers said. “I’ve known what I have been capable of, but the hard part for most kids is having the discipline to continue to apply yourself. All the work can seem very daunting, but I knew I had to push through it.”
Within the school, Hance has found an amazing environment to help her get to where she is at now. From teachers to peers, she has been able to find the support needed to achieve goals both academically and athletically.
“My high school experience has been awesome. From my freshman to senior year I’ve been blessed with great teachers who are always available to help me in any way possible,” Hance said. “I’ve found a great group of friends who are so supportive of me and my passions. I’ve achieved multiple goals, both academically and athletically which has made my experience even better.”
Myers has also found many different areas of support and found comfort in his routine. This routine has helped him enjoy his time in high school while also pursuing his academic interests.
“My high school experience was pretty amazing. I can confidently say that I was able to do all the things that I dreamed of doing coming into high school, and I’m not filled with a lot of regrets,” Myers said. “But, to manage my time I found it best to get into a routine. I would set aside things I had to do each day and when I had to do them. To not get overwhelmed I would focus on taking on each day at a time.”
Over the last four years, both Hance and Myers have created a name for themselves at Kennedy High School. With all of their achievements, there is no question why they are the senior class’ academic leaders. As they graduate and carry on with their careers they will continue to look back at the time that they spent at Kennedy.
“I would tell underclassmen that it’s normal to be overwhelmed but don’t let that stop you from participating in activities,” Hance said. “It is so rewarding to be part of something and gives you so many opportunities.”
