At this time in the school year, much of the eighth grade population is stressed or excited about going to high school for the first time. Some do not know how to feel. We interviewed eighth grade student Hunter White. Hunter is going to Southside, and we hoped to get his opinions on going to ninth grade in hopes of giving readers some help and insight. We asked him ten questions that covered academics, athletics, and emotions.

“How do you feel about going to high school and why?” He didn’t hesitate. “Very excited. Um, because it’s a big school and I wanna play football at a better level,” he says. On the same topic as football, we asked, “How do you feel about the athletics program at your school?” Moving to a new school brings an unfamiliar environment with different facilities and coaches. White said, “The coaches are amazing. They put a lot of dedication into what they do, and they really care.” Hunter has no worries. Sounds like something for Southside athletics students to look forward to!

However, other than athletics and first impressions, a huge part of going to high school would be the pressure of making good grades. They are important! We asked Hunter how he felt about the subject. “What approach are you going to take in regards to schoolwork?” For this, he had a lot to say: “I plan on working very hard in my academics and partaking in studying, working hard, and hardly working. I want to get grades of true excellence.” Although he plans on doing this, he says that he will be prioritizing athletics over academics. “I’m going to prioritize athletics, just because it means more to me and I enjoy it more,” he says.

Most importantly, though, we had to ask him about how he feels socially. This is a huge worry for a lot of students. “What kind of people do you think you will meet there? Are you expecting to make new friends?” “Well, overall just new people I’ve never met before. And Ramsey kids. But yes, because there’s so many people, I feel like I’ll be able to make some,” Hunter states. Certainly, there is a lot to worry about. However, high school may not be as bad as it seems. Through this interview, Hunter hopes to help anyone out and inspire people to be more optimistic for the future.