As a newly minted senior, I have many traditions to savor this year. Just last week we lunched with our teachers at a senior/faculty barbecue, and next month promises ring ceremony. The distant future...

I did not spend my summer working in a lab at UCLA, but that doesn’t mean what I did with my time was worthless. If you’re passionate about the sciences and you work as a research assistant, that’s...

Starting at the moment you reach the upper school, it hits you. Each year that sensation multiplies until it slowly dictates your life. We all deal with stress in different ways. Some choose to wallow...

When I received my personal essay assignment three weeks ago in English III Honors, I was terrified. The idea of writing a five or six-page essay in which I must define myself seemed like walking into...

Regardless of the outcome, I’m grateful for the experience. When I say this, I’m often told I sound like a politician. Even though many people might be insulted by that remark, I’ll take it as a...

As junior year comes to a close, the highs and lows of senior year loom in the distance. Top four things I’m looking forward to most about senior year: 1. Classes: For the first time in six years, I...

School Year Abroad China, the high school foreign exchange program I am participating in, took me 16,000 miles away from my home and didn’t give me a place that I could call mine. They gave me a host...

 Within seconds, it appeared on tons of screens as the Facebook pages loaded and Instagram and Twitter apps were opened. There it was - so small, yet so big – “World Peace for Justin.” Justin Carr...

Everyone keeps asking me to say something about Justin Carr ’14’s death, but, in all honesty, I’ve been trying to forget about it. It’s surprisingly easy to do when, like me, one is thousands of...

As I was doing my homework in my room after school last week, I heard my dad call from downstairs, a grave seriousness marking his usually jovial tone. "Elizabeth! Your mom and I need to talk to you." "Oh...

Couples shouldn’t need a specific day as a reminder to show love. If they do, they probably won’t last until the next Valentine’s Day. The cute notes, saying "I love you," the sweet gestures and...

When we are children, on Valentine’s Day we give cards to every child in our class, even though some are clearly infected with cooties. We are taunted by students that think writing out a full sentence...