By Matthew Mangels/ GG Staff Writer
Everything has its ups and downs, it’s good and bad, and North Star is no different. From North Star’s crowded and funky smells in the hall to meeting new friends and longer passing periods, North Star has its good and bad qualities.
Freshman Marshal Austin said, “The worst thing is probably the very strong, overpowering, pungent smells in the hallways.” Every hallway comes with new scents and smells, every day you get better and better holding in your breath.
One hallway that’s always the worst is the athletic hallway. Many athletes complain of the smell that overpowers this hallway from the men’s athletic locker room. “It’s only this bad during football season,” said teacher Christina Nevitt. “It’s like all the gear just soaks up the sweaty smell, so when the equipment is kept in the lockers and the hallway, you have to plug your nose or hold your breath just to get to the pool.”
North Star is also full of exciting activities from Speech to Key Club, College Club to athletics. With football, cross country, volleyball, and boys tennis, many students are busy playing and attending events. With its goofy themes and crazy hype, many people love going to athletic events, not only cheer on the Gators, but also talk to friends.
Sophomore Dazzler Olivia Kriz said, “The worst part [of North Star] would be the overcrowded hallways.”
North Star has approximately 2,200 students currently enrolled. Between the high enrollment numbers and the variety of extracurriculars, friends can be made very easily. Junior Chloe Hallett said, “The best part [of North Star] is meeting new friends.” Making friends at North Star is very easy, from class projects to playing a sport with them and/or against them. With a lot of students at North Star, you could be a senior and meet people who have gone to North Star all four years and not even know them.
Many students worry about future college classes and the AP and Diff classes at North Star can help students out dramatically with their future college plans. But, even though the classes help out with college, they can cause a great deal of stress with the amount of homework and studying required. But as some former Gators are finding out, these harder classes and piles of work are coming in handy later on.
Recently, North star Alumna Emina Mrkaljevic, class of 2016, said the bone book she created in her anatomy class has come in handy during her class at SCC. “Everyone else in the class is stressing about notes. Since I kept my binder, I have it all labeled already.”
So, while the halls may be overcrowded and the homework may seem endless, North Star still has a lot of opportunities to make new friends and participate in clubs and groups with a variety of interests. It shouldn’t be too hard to take the good with the bad.
