Looking back at their four years at Prairie Ridge, seniors from the class of 2021 offer this advice to younger students:

Make sure your gpa is good freshman year  – Abbi Harris

Work super hard your freshman year because your GPA affects every year after! – Adrianna Viegas 

Try your best freshman year! – Alex Harris

Work hard your freshman year, your GPA will thank you. -Alex (Xan) Gordon

Don’t worry too much about anything. The years go by so fast and it’s better to have some regrets than to wonder ‘what if?’ – Ali Brennan

Don’t stop trying in school. Maintain a good GPA and good grades all throughout high school.  – Amber Sapp

Take the time to enjoy your time in high school because it goes so quickly.  – Angela Manno

Get more involved and apply early – Anna Berry

Don’t clog the upper parking lot… use the lower one, too. – Anthony Quindel

GET INVOLVED!! It goes by so fast, and you won’t realize it until you have a few weeks left.  – Bella Crimaldi

High school goes by so fast, so cherish your time here and don’t forget about how important your GPA is! – Bella Sassine

Just go for it, it’s better to take the chance than regret what could’ve been  – Betsy Demanos

Take your freshman year seriously. – Brooke Karlblom

Work hard while you’re an underclassmen. Time flies and you get really busy as an upperclassman, so it’s nice to get a lot of credits, volunteer hours, etc in as early as you can! – Christine Ponga

Don’t take the time you have in high school for granted. It flies by, so make sure you get involved and try to make new connections while you can. – Conner Trznadel

Your time at PR is gonna fly by, even if it doesn’t feel like it freshman year. Take advantage of it. – Eilie Riemenschneider

Try your hardest freshman year – Emily Ahrens

Don’t worry about being the coolest or most popular person, just find a group of friends and stick with them. – Erik Gibson

Don’t fake it to make it: be yourself. – Erika Deegan

Don’t focus too much on your grades. High school is an experience, and you should make the most of it. – Ethan Elliott

Don’t focus on your grades so much that you don’t live your high school life  – Fiona Olsen 

Find clubs, sports, and activities to join starting your freshman year! It really helps when it comes to making new friends and exploring your interests.  – Francesca Pollock

One thing I wish I would have done differently is started trying in classes since the first day of freshman year. I believed that those years didn’t count, that junior and senior year were the important ones. But I was wrong. You have to build up your academics to finish your four years strong. Even if you know that you don’t want to go to a four year college after high school, never give up. Always try harder than the day before.  – Gillian Llanes

Although you may be nervous or scared to stand out, do it! Be different and make an impact. Don’t be scared to get more involved and help others.  – Grace Marineau

Be yourself. Be confident. Stay focused on your work and don’t fall behind. BE INVOLVED: Clubs, Plays/Musicals, extracurricular activities, etc – Grayce Woodruff

My advice to the underclassmen is simply if you have an interest in something there is probably a class for it so talk to your counselor and take the class because each class is unique and wonderful. – Hayley Hinkemeyer

Be kind to yourself. Work hard, and ask for help when you need it, but don’t be afraid to take a step back and just focus on yourself. This is a super hard time for everyone, and you can’t be expected to be at your best 100% of the time. Be gentle. – Hazel Kocher

Don’t be afraid to do things out of your comfort zone. Take chances. Do things you usually wouldn’t do. – Jackson Rietz

A piece of advice from me would be to talk. Talk to your teachers and your counselor, make those connections because that’s what can make school so much fun and it’s nice to know you have people in your corner who will write you letters of recommendation because they know you and your character. – Jayden Forté

Leave time for yourself! Obviously you should always try your best, but give yourself time to enjoy the experience. Join clubs, or sports or anything to have some fun. – Jordan Tress

Do not think grades are everything. When you’re applying to colleges, all A’s might seem like what puts you over the top but it’s your passion projects and what makes you happy that make you stand out. So please make memories and don’t stay up until 2 am every night (but don’t slack off either).  – Kaitlyn Walls

Don’t be afraid to ask for help, or need help. That’s how you improve – Kate Lanza

Get involved early! – Kaylin Mitchell

Try freshman year. Don’t slack on grades – Levi Wagner

Don’t forget to have fun. High school is all about having fun with friends and getting ready for after high school plans. So don’t forget to go out and enjoy being teenagers. – Liliana Franklin

I wish I wasn’t afraid to take a non-AP or honors version of a class in some cases just because I thought it would hurt my GPA. – Luca Listi

Find something that brings happiness to yourself and others around you and invest in it. – Luke Kim

Include everyone in what you’re doing. You never know who you will become friends with. – Mackenzie Krystal

Take all the Dual Credit classes you can, and go to EVERY school event. I wish I had more dual credit classes under my belt for college, so I could graduate faster. But I didn’t go to a single football game my sophomore year and it makes me sad that I didn’t get to experience that, but besides the football games, go to a basketball, volleyball, baseball, tennis match with a group of friends, those were some of my favorite memories. Go to all the plays, musicals, and the end of the year events (PRAC was so funny!) If you’re not on the team, support your classmates, or go for kicks and giggles. – Maddie Flint

Try hard your freshman year. It will impact your GPA  – Mara Garbanzos

Make sure you do good during underclassmen years because it will affect you when you get to junior and senior year – Mary Giffin

Ask people for their names more often. Other people knowing your name increases the bond you’ll have with them, and it spreads around, making you known to more people. It’ll make you happy if you’re known in school. – Michael Salvi

If I were to go back and redo anything I would live more in the moment. Enjoy your time at PR. It goes by really fast. – Molly Ruszkowski 

You are not defined by a number; you have so much to offer beyond your GPA and test scores. – Morgan Maglente

I wish I would’ve gotten more involved in clubs and sports, as I only played one sport throughout high school. Getting involved is always a good way to meet people and have fun. – Morgan Sapp

Pay attention in class and do all of your homework and give nothing less than your best every time. Even if you don’t like the subject or don’t believe that it will be useful for you in the future, it’s better to get it done now than to be forced to do it again later. – Nathan Jankowski

Do all your work when given – Neoshia Davis

Join clubs and try to have fun in high school. It’s going to be over before you know it. – Paige Aldape

My advice to underclassmen would be to always express who you are. I’ve never felt like I fit in, but once I stopped caring about what people thought of me, I felt free. You are your worst critic. Be uplifting to others AND yourself.  – Paloma Gasparov

Pay attention. Actually do good in class and make friends – Patryk Bombala

In contrast to what my fellow seniors are going to say, do a little less. I got involved with many different clubs, which is something I can recommend. What I advise against is burning up summers with classes. I took summer school for 4 years. Don’t do that. Take some time to relax. – Paul Lim

Do your best and don’t miss assignments and always try your best to reach your goal even if it seems impossible – Payton Smith

Join activities, sports, clubs, etc.  – Rosie Rojewski

The temptation of not doing any homework is quite great. You may think you’ll be alright on the test, but sometimes some of the problems from your homework are direct copies to the test – Ryan Pearson

Pay attention and take good notes in class, do your homework and study a little every night… If you put the work in, you can do anything. – Sajiv Shah

Find balance with school, social life, and activities so you’re able to do it all.  – Sam Hemstreet

Try everything, fill your time, take advantage of your 4 years here at PR – Tyler Crawford