As the end of the year test season starts and sports and clubs come to an end, and seniors are ready for their next chapter in life, the students and staff of Key West High School (KWHS) are reflecting back on the 2022-2023 school year. 

Starting from when school started in August 2022, there were exciting things going on. Whether it was more exciting for students or exciting for everyone. There were pep rallies, football games, and the infamous fight that ended with a bit of romance. Not to forget the one lunch period where there was free ice cream being handed out in the cafeteria. Although there were many events that KWHS Conchs were acknowledged and outstanding in. 

In the fall, Conch 5 Studios went to New York City for the All-American High School Film Festival. This was Monika Jaroszewicz’s, a KWHS junior, favorite moment from the school year as she made lots of memories and visited the city for the first time. She described the film event as “unique and inspiring”. Also in the entertainment area, KWHS sophomore, Breana McKenney, mentioned her favorite moment of this school year being the Winter Showcase presented by the KWHS Drama Club, saying, “It was really fun to be a part of it and see a variety of acts from other people.” Aside from film and theater, there were many sporting events that were the favorites of many. One was the last football game of the season for Parker Curry, a KWHS junior, as she plays mellophone in the KWHS marching band she states, “…it’s always such an amazing experience. I had a great time with my section and we had a lot of laughs.” Which as the band performs at halftime and at the pep rallies, it is no doubt that they do well and have a great time as well. Ella Hall, a senior at KWHS, states that her favorite moment is all the baseball games she has attended. Saying, “They’re fun to go to, and the guys on the team crack me up with all the petty smack talk they say to the opposing team.” Which is always a funny thing to hear on the field. 

Unfortunately, those moments we all loved and will remember forever have to come to an end, and with what most call ‘testing season’, Advanced Placement (AP) and End of Course (EOC) exams, and the Florida Assessment of Student Thinking (FAST) testing for 9th and 10th grades, and finals. Many students and teachers are stressed about the end of the year. The juniors also have the US History EOC. Being in ‘testing season’, Monika Jaroszewicz states, “So being so close to the end of the year is just a jumble of emotions, but mostly, it is stressful and exciting at the same time.”  One of her classmates, Parker Curry, feels the same as she said, “With the end of the school year being in less than a month, I’m still in disbelief. I don’t quite understand how I’m going to be a senior when I feel like I’m barely a junior.” Especially for the junior class of 2024, there are many nerves when it comes to thinking about senior year and the events done to prepare for college. 

For seniors, the end of the year becomes an even bigger “jumble of emotions” due to graduation and everyone going off to start their lives, whether they are going to college or not. There are people finishing their required credits to graduate, deciding what college to go to, and getting prepared to say goodbye to their childhood friends, family, and their high school life. The senior from before, Ella Hall, is definitely feeling the “jumble of emotions”, stating, “I feel sad about leaving my high school memories behind, but I’m also excited to start a new chapter in life.” As for many of the seniors, saying goodbye to their high school friends and their hometown will be tough, especially when most have lived in the Florida Keys for most of their lives. 

As Key West High School nears the end of the 2022-2023 school year, whether testing, doing homework, or in class, the students will continue to make many memories. Additionally, as the school year ends and summer starts, there will be many opportunities to make memories to last forever.