Reflections from the metro Sioux City Class of 2019
Most of the seven 2019 graduates assembled in a conference room at the Journal offices on May 22 didn’t know each other. But they frequently nodded or laughed or rang out in agreement as they discussed their high school careers.
There was the unexpected random connection, such as one boy noting he had seen a girl participant from a different school at a Sioux City restaurant the night before. Some of the seniors figured out they had seen the others in various extracurricular activities, like music competitions, in recent months.
And then there was the moment when Katey Nammany, who graduated from Bishop Heelan Sunday, said schools should add information for students explaining how to apply for college student loans, so the process would be less confusing. Immediately, both Morgan Bowman, of South Sioux City High School, and Rachel Pirrie, of Siouxland Christian High School, interjected, “That’s true.”
If seeking to feel good about the future of young people, listen to well-spoken Class of 2019 seniors describe what they wished they knew back when high school started, the teachers who impacted their lives, the activities they loved and the (sometimes late arriving) lessons they learned about making friends and taking risks outside their comfort zone.
The Journal invited eight metro schools to send one graduating senior to Wednesday’s roundtable discussion. Seven accepted — Sioux City East, North and West, South Sioux City, Sergeant Bluff-Luton and Siouxland Christian. (Dakota Valley did not select a representative.)
View excerpts from the discussion in the full article here.
Article by the Sioux City Journal, Bret Hayworth.