High school students have a lot of opportunities, especially at Wilsonville, with several well-funded and talented sports teams, over 150 classes available in numerous areas. Additionally, there are dozens of student- and staff-run clubs and extracurricular activities, to say nothing of all of the events the school holds, such as sporting events, plays, holiday celebrations, fundraisers, and dances.
However, students are only in school for four years, and trying to stay for more is discouraged. While four years is a long time and many feel they’ve been or will be in high school forever, it is still not enough time to do all that is available to them.
Of course, almost no one would want to do everything offered here, but still, many students regret the opportunities they had but never took. I never went to a school dance, which I didn’t particularly want to do, but I never joined the Dungeons and Dragons Club, which I feel like I would have enjoyed, though I don’t have much experience with tabletop role-playing games.
Perhaps the thing I want to do most, but probably will not, is attend a Wildcat football game. I’ve followed the NFL ever since I was a toddler, yet I haven’t actually been to a football game in over a decade, and that was only at the Division 3 college level. Last year, my mom, sister, and I traveled to attend the homecoming game against Canby, but couldn’t find parking. The glimpses into where the school’s community is strongest were enticing enough that we persevered much longer than we probably should have, giving up when we realized parking was a truly impossible task.
Many other students have special experiences they imagined having here that they did not end up having, some more important to them than others, like senior Devin Morales, who wants to “make an effort to actively help our school community”, but doing so is “not in a lot of people’s mind”, and he “hasn’t necessarily been prompted to; I think it’s difficult to approach.”
Morales wants to “speak about inclusivity and about what happens behind the scenes”, as there is “a lot of bias going on here”, though not in the way many expect, with a recent “prayer for [recently assassinated conservative activist] Charlie Kirk, but we don’t speak about shootings.”
On a lighter note, Morales also wants “more opportunities for club fairs”, wanting to join the Skate Club, as “it has a wonderful community, I think that community is necessary, at least a welcoming community is necessary.”
Senior Lucas Lindley has a similar experience, saying he’s “taken all the classes [he’s] wanted to take.” However, as his classes are all selected for the next semester, he can’t take those he’s newly curious about, like Intro to Digital Arts, which “might have been fun.” As Lindley is mostly content with his high school experience, he admits to being “a boring person for this interview.”