The most important aspect of academic success is being involved with the environment that schooling allows for. It’s not just engagement within classes, it’s also interacting with extracurricular activities, alongside the productivity and experience only found by engaging in activities outside of school. All of these opportunities grant students the ability to discover what they are passionate about, and develop perspectives that will help them pursue higher education or careers outside of high school.

Staying organized can help students manage their responsibilities and stay actively caught up in their classes. Junior Rabeea Bari explains an essential tool that she utilizes to keep track of work in her classes.

“I cannot stress this enough–PLANNER! Everything goes in there, even if it’s just a reminder to send an email. I put assignments on the day they’re due and then again for when I’m going to do them,” Bari said.

Another key component in Academic success revolves around setting personal goals. Senior Platinum Liang sets high expectations for himself so that he can perform well in school.

“I know this is kind of harsh, but I try to get all A’s. It is tough, but like, that’s the baseline and I’ve worked really hard towards achieving that,” Liang said.

Students can also challenge themselves by taking harder classes, which require diligence, and give students the ability to obtain college credit. FHC College and Career Counselor Michelle Breur gives her suggestions for taking an AP course.

“Take at least 1 honors or AP class to raise your GPA and show that you are challenging yourself in your best subject,” Bruer said.

A common struggle experienced by students is time management. Striking a balance between time spent for personal activities and academic ones, is something that is difficult, and looks different for everybody. Liang details this balance within his own life.

“ I do five extracurriculars. And outside of school, I also do stuff like sometimes I’ll play sand volleyball with a group of people. I hang out with friends, and it is really tough to balance it out. But for a lot of things, I just have to improvise. So speech and debate, for example, on our tournaments, during downtime between rounds, I’ll crank out some homework. Just so I can get it all done,” Liang said

Doing well in school is an important avenue for discovering passions, and opening up future opportunities. Focusing on Academic success helps you prepare for your future, and pursue the things that you are interested in. 

The application of these skills are a great way to prepare for life after high school. Bari explains why education is so important to her:

“ I’m the daughter of immigrants, academic success and having a good career is the quickest turn around in America I feel. My parents are educated, so it’s not as bad for us, but there is definitely a tier system in America where immigrants are lower.,” Bari said.

 Extracurricular activities and jobs outside of school are also a great way to gain some real world experience and develop interpersonal skills for careers and college.

The importance of academic success in high school can not be understated. Mrs. Breur summarizes what goes into academic success, and why it’s so important.

“Get involved with a club or go visit a college or trade or a job that reminds you how important school can be for your future. You need to be involved with something to give  perspective.  And if you can figure out what you are good at or want to do when you graduate, it helps the mind to know that your time here, although very short, has some bearing on your future,” Bruer said.