Students Get Real

If a genie appears and offers to restore your youth and whisk you to high school, think twice. As BERGEN’s annual forum of rising 12th graders shows, life is complex for students today. There’s not only homework pressure, lockdown drills, social media, stress, vaping and the college admission process, but also the suddenly ubiquitous artificial intelligence (AI), which promises to write your papers for you instantly without charge and possibly even without egregious error. Time is scarce—what if you don’t use this tool but that classmate you’re competing with does? (See page 40 for a Special Report on AI in Bergen schools.)

The admiration our panel members express for parents and siblings is notable, as is their unabashed “thumbs up” for social media. They’re no typical sample; they tend to be the standout scholars, athletes and leaders of their schools. (What other teens would sit still to be questioned by a magazine?) But their candor can help us understand a population that often seems inscrutable. After all, these—cliché alert!—are the adults of tomorrow, and either they or the computers they program will be running the country soon.

Our text has been edited for length and clarity, of course. Last year we made a big deal out of kids’ use of the word “like” as a conversational tic 434 times in the unedited transcript. But in 2025 we have, like, larger concerns, so we won’t, like, bother about that.

Rita: Let’s start with cell phones. Some schools have considered a policy where they’re put aside so they’re not a distraction during the day.

Massimo: At Ramsey we have Yondr pouches. In the morning we lock our phone up, and then we’re allowed to unlock it if we leave the school. So when our teacher’s not here, if we have a period off, we can unlock it then. Then at lunch, we’re allowed to unlock it. But you’re only allowed to unlock it in the cafeteria and in the gym. In the library you can’t have your phone. Then, at the end of the day, everybody has to unlock it. So basically for three hours, then lunch, then three hours, you’re not supposed to be on it at all.

Rita: This is new this year?

Massimo: Yeah, they implemented it right when we got back from winter break, so in January.

Rita: Has it been hard to get used to that?

Massimo: No. It’s just our phone policy has changed so much. Every year of high school I’ve been in, it’s changed dramatically. Not all the teachers love it because there are a lot of things you definitely need your phone for in class.

Rita: What do the rest of you think? Your schools haven’t implemented this yet, but are you feeling, “I can’t not have my phone with me”?

Caitlyn: I actually don’t have a personal phone. I have a work phone, which I take with me when my parents are worried that I might get kidnapped when I go out during the day. That’s why I have one today, so I can get a ride home. I actually kind of apprecia te a phone-use policy that’s a little bit stricter. We have pouches on the wall that are all numbered, and the students who remember, or the teachers who really don’t want their students on their phones, say, “Hey, at the beginning of class, put your phone with your number.” It’s a concerted effort, but not enough people do it for it to make a difference.

Evan: My school began writing teachers up if the number of pouches doesn’t match the number of students. I think that’s kind of a rough approach. I feel like we could find different alternatives. We also have this policy where you have to use your phone to go, like, to the bathroom or the office. If we were to do what Ramsey did, and put our phones in the pouches, I’m not sure how that would work. We kind of need our phones.

Rita: You have to do something on your phone to go to the restroom? You’re all shaking your heads.

Maia: I have it at my school. They started it last year, I believe, because we had issues with some kids destroying the bathrooms. Like, during lunch, the bathroom is a really gross place. I mean, sinks, soap dispensers, toilets have been broken off the walls completely. People draw in stalls, people throw wet things of toilet paper.

Rita: Let’s talk about using AI as a tool to help you study or to check your schoolwork. What’s been your experience? And what’s the line between doing that and actually cheating?

Nathan: I do use it for school, but in the sense that, if I have a writing assignment, I’m not using it to write the essay or whatever for me. I’m using it to create an outline to help get the ball rolling and spark some ideas, and then I’ll use it to, like, help me write it.

Dylan: I use AI mostly to help make practice problems. Let’s say I have a pre-calculus test coming up. I’ll ask ChatGPT, “Oh, make me X amount of practice problems for this particular topic.” You know, give me that, I’ll say, with answers. I find that a good way to practice. But obviously, there’s a line between cheating, where, like, you’re asking, “Oh, write an essay,” and then you’re copying and pasting it. I feel that’s a line you shouldn’t cross.

Brooke: I used ChatGPT for studying for my AP Language exam. I would ask it for prompts, and I would write the essay, and it would get graded back to me, and it really helped me to prepare for the exam, because I was really nervous about it. It really helped me more than writing the essays in class did.

Cole: I’ve used AI to teach a subject to me if I don’t understand it. Like, in pre-calc, we had a quiz that I missed the class for, and so I had it explain the whole lesson to me, and it gave me prompts, and it kind of dumbed it down for me. I got 100 on the test, so it worked out.

Rita: So it taught you a lesson?

Cole: I used it as a teacher, basically. I’ll be like: “This is my essay. Can you, like, clean it up for me a little bit, and give me tips and stuff? Is there a better word or phrase to use here and there?”

Elliott: I do kind of the same thing, but I do it more in history. I’ll say, “Explain the Civil War.” It will use language I’ll understand. Rather than just giving me facts, it’ll explain it to me like a story. I do it sometimes for physics too. It will help me explain the why behind what’s happening instead of just memorizing the equations. So I feel like I learn almost on a deeper level.

Evan: I want to bring up a point Brooke made. I also took AP Lang, and we had to write essays nonstop. My teacher, he couldn’t grade it on time, so sometimes he would use AI to check our papers, and it would give us feedback. I mean, it’s better than getting no feedback at all.

Dylan: I just wanted to add to what Elliott was saying about using AI as almost like a teacher. I was taking AP Chemistry. And I don’t want to say I was cramming—but, you know. So a lot of times I would ask, “Oh, explain Unit 1 for me and focus on this particular topic,” whatever it might be. It would help me understand it more than—I don’t want to say how any teacher could, but, like, it would definitely help.

Rita: I know you get a disclaimer with AI that there might be mistakes. Have any of you had an experience where it’s wrong? Everybody’s shaking their heads.

Caitlyn: One of the biggest issues is you have to be specific. You can’t just put in generic prompts. I use ChatGPT for physics because it’s a subject I struggle with. So whenever I’m doing a practice problem, I’ll put in a question and ask it to do a step-bystep walk-through to check my work, see where I went wrong. And sometimes if I’m not super exact about units or what equations I’m using, I get the complete wrong answer because it’s making assumptions.

Rita: What about cheating? Is there an issue with cheating using AI in your schools?

Jillian: In my biology class, my teacher doesn’t lock the Chromebook, so we have the tabs open. Or people will just keep their phones out and I will see them trying to scan it and then hiding their phones. I just think it’s unfair because I don’t use it at all. I’m scared of getting caught, and I don’t want to get in trouble.

Maia: In my AP government class, they were practicing an FRQ—a free response question—for the AP exam. And they all use ChatGPT. The teacher has the scanner he puts the responses through. All of them were coming up saying, “This has ChatGPT in it”—or whatever they use. So he made them all write a three-page essay to apologize and make sure they’ll never use it again. And it actually worked. But I think there needs to be guidelines. He made sure to establish, like, ethical guidelines on how to use it. And I think it really helped.

GOBBLING UP JOBS

Rita: What are your feelings about the future job market?

Evan: I feel like AI is taking a lot of job opportunities. I mean, it helps out, teaching us as students. But also, if you think about it, using AI to teach us is also taking away from what teachers are doing. And that’s just one of the aspects. Like, when I was younger, I was really interested in interior design. I was thinking about actually majoring in it in college. But then AI came out and I noticed that AI could kind of just do it for you. So then I had to switch my major to something where AI won’t affect it.

Rita: Are we thinking about going into trades instead of getting liberal arts degrees? I mean, interior design, there’s still definitely a human connection to that, right?

Evan: I love interior design. I’m still thinking about minoring in it. But I’m scared if I major in it, the job market’s going to shrink so much, because why pay someone to do a job when you could go into AI and they could do it for you? I read an article where even nurses are being impacted because they’re starting to use AI to take care of patients.

Jack: I think AI is a great thing. It’s revolutionary. It makes things better and faster and greater. But if we’re supposed to be the future generation of America and a robot can just replace the things that we’re meant to do and do it better and quicker, then why are we even—I guess—supporting it? We are improving AI. So if we continue to improve AI, eventually it’s going to come around and take away everything we’ve been working for.

Aidan: I’m not too sure what I want to do. I know I want to go into pre-med in college and maybe be a doctor. I don’t think AI is nearly advanced to completely take over that profession. I think AI is super-helpful in terms of assisting doctors with all the technology in the medical field. It’s a really good tool that will help all future doctors.

Dylan: I’m in the same boat as Aidan—I also want to go into college for pre-med. I also feel it’s extremely important to use AI as a tool. Maybe instead of AI doing the entire interior design, we could use AI to create an outline. Use it as a tool instead of it being the entire thing.

Elliott: I want to become an athletic trainer. I feel that is something that would be very difficult to replace with AI because it requires a level of connection with the team you’re working with.

Maia: I want to go into law when I go to college. Law is something that you are essentially determining the future life of a company or a person—or, honestly, anything. I feel like that would be a very difficult place for AI to be successful. AI making these decisions in a courtroom, you know, might not always be right.

Evan: If there’s maybe government regulations on AI, that could protect the job market. A lot of people are already in college and already want to pursue careers. At the end of the day, people paying their professionals end up spending money on AI, which takes money away from the people and sends it to the corporations.

Rita: Do you feel accepted by your peers? Are there people, perhaps, who feel marginalized in your school community?

Elliott: I go to Immaculate Heart Academy, and a big thing you always hear every time you go to an admissions event is about the sisterhood.

Rita: As opposed to “mean girls”?

Elliott: Yeah, and it sounds a little silly when you say it out loud. Honestly, before even my first day there, I had been like, “This has got to be just some big thing they tell girls.” But after going there for three years and making the friends I have—even, like, the teachers—I can truly say that the sisterhood is a real thing. And I really do feel accepted there. I have never been in such a supportive community as I have been at IHA

Massimo: In Ramsey, I’ve been going to school with the same kids since kindergarten. And I’ve basically been friendly with nearly every other kid in my school at some point in the 10 years. At this point everybody’s kind of fallen into their own little niche.

Aidan: I go to Bosco, and we have, like, the same thing as IHA—you know, the brotherhood. At the beginning of freshman year, you have all these kids from different towns, all over New Jersey and New York, and everyone has different interests. They play different sports. But after that first couple months, it’s like the Bosco brotherhood is a real thing. I definitely feel super accepted.

Rita: Are there cliques?

Dylan: I was born and raised in Queens, and I came to New Jersey right before freshman year, when I joined Bergen Catholic’s freshman football. I kind of felt like everyone else already knew each other. While I definitely felt accepted, it wasn’t really, like, my group of people. So as freshman year got on, I’ll be honest, I was extremely, extremely shy. Like I was closed off—I wouldn’t talk to anyone. So that was, like, my personality. But obviously, I wanted to grow out of that. Starting sophomore year, it was mostly just people in my class [that I spoke with]. You just talk to them, you try to be yourself. I feel that’s very important to find your group—just being yourself.

Rita: Is there crossover among the groups?

Nathan: Definitely the sports all have their own friend groups. But even within those sports, there are people that play multiple sports throughout the year. The person that plays football is also on the baseball team. So then that brings them together a little more. Or I’m friends with some people on the tennis team, and for baseball our season’s over, but they’re still going to the States. So we all came out and supported them, and we’re cheering them on.

Brooke: It’s kind of scary sometimes, talking to people who aren’t really in your group. Because I’m not in sports; I do theater and band. I get nervous when I’m talking to people that I don’t really see every day. It’s similar in the way that theater and band is like a family. With sports, there’s a bond you have with your team. But I feel like it’s difficult, sometimes, to branch out of your group.

WHERE YOU FIND THE NERDS

Rita: So are we saying that it’s really up to the individual, and there is acceptance if you’re willing to be a little vulnerable?

Caitlyn: That’s a very fair point. I’m an art kid, and the most interplay I have with other groups or cliques in the school is in the higher-level academic classes. Because that’s when you get the smart nerds, you get the smart art kids. We’re in an environment where we’re in a hard class together and have to support one another. So you really get that kind of crossover, where you’re different people with different interests, you come from different walks of life, but you’re friendly in an environment where you’re all working toward a common goal.

Rita: That makes me think about competition. Of course, you’re working toward a common goal, but there’s only one valedictorian. Are there situations where you want to get ahead of somebody else? You’re probably here because you’re high achievers. How does that play into the way you interact with your peers?

Cole: Definitely in the higher classes, it’s supercompetitive. I’m definitely like, “What did you get on the test?” “Oh, I got this, you got that.” It’s more like friendly banter. If I got a worse grade than my friend, I wouldn’t feel bad about it at all.

Jack: I was put into the Aquinas Program. It’s like, I’m given a scholarship and I’m in all honors classes. It’s really hard because they expect a lot from you.

Jillian: I agree with Jack. I’m in AP Lang; we do a bunch of practice tests and stuff online. And I’m not a good test taker, so I don’t really do that good on them. Everybody will be like, “Oh, yeah, I got like a 38 out of 45.” And I’m like, “Oh, me too.” It’s more of a friendly competition. We’re not antagonizing each other.

Elliott: We talked about people finding their niche in high school—I think that also plays into it. There obviously is that level of competition. But now as juniors, having gone to school with each other for three years, you kind of already know where people do better. You understand and are able to appreciate another girl’s strong suit rather than thinking, “Oh, I need to be better than her.”

Rita: That’s nice to hear. So is there bullying at your schools? [All students shake their heads “no.”]

Rita: Great. Do you all feel safe at school?

Cole: I definitely feel safe. My school has a school officer who’s always there. He’s always, like, armed in some way. Then we always have officers stop in every now and then. We don’t have a metal detector or anything. But we have double doors. And you have to go through this whole system to get in if you’re a visitor. And they’re always checking if you’re a student coming in. They always know where you are.

Rita: So we can’t just show up and say, “I want to see Cole”?

Cole: No, no. They’re like, “Why are you here? How are you related to him?” Blah, blah, blah.

Jillian: At my school we also have an officer. I’m pretty sure he’s armed. We also have a security guard. And for students, we have uniforms. We have to scan in and out to leave and enter the building. Visitors have to ring the bell and go through the office to get in. And then, the police station is right behind our high school. So, God forbid something did happen, we know they’re right there.

Evan: We have a little police station inside our school. We’re also near American Dream, as you know. So, like, some incidents happen over there. But in my school and, like, my school grounds, it feels completely safe.

Elliott: I also feel really safe at my school. We have an amazing director of security. He used to be a police officer—I think he was also a Marine at some point. He’s very skilled, and he has done a great job. He just came in this year. We all have ID lanyards— students and faculty.

Massimo: We have all the same safety measures as you guys. But, like, the difference for Ramsey is we have the Yondr pouches now. When they introduced us, a big part of it was a lot of parents complaining. Ramsey has had a “swatting” incident, like, three years ago now. It’s like when somebody reports to the school that there’s an armed shooter or whatever—and there’s really not. So they barge in with the SWAT trucks, and the whole school gets locked in. Kids were texting their friends and texting their parents. We don’t have the luxury of doing that anymore. It doesn’t make me feel scared at school. But it’s always in the back of my head, like, if something were to happen, what would I do? Because I know the first thing I’d want to do is text my parents, like, “I’m OK.” But without our phones, you can’t really do that anymore.

Maia: We do have officers at my school, and you have to scan in and scan out. I don’t know if any of you guys heard about it, but a month or so ago there was a stabbing at Fort Lee High School and the kid ended up in critical condition. That’s like a five-, 10-minute drive from my school. The person who did it wasn’t apprehended until a few hours later. So, a really terrifying experience.

Caitlyn: What Massimo mentioned about the school being swatted, that happened to me too. I was stuck in a teacher’s classroom for, like, an hour and a half. So when I went upstairs, there were armed officers, police officers everywhere. It was crazy. But our school handled it very well. There were even news choppers overhead.

Nathan: River Dell had a swatting. So cops came in. It was about an hour and a half. But in that time, we all had our phones. I have a brother in school, so I’m texting him, making sure he’s OK. My mom was bringing me lunch that day, so I had to call my mom: “Don’t come.” Being able to contact my parents to say I’m OK was really helpful.

Rita: When this happens, though, what do you do? If it’s lunchtime, and there’s no food, no water, you can’t go to the bathroom. Jillian: You sit in the corner in the dark.

Massimo: At our school, after that, we have, like, these big buckets in all of our classrooms now. Like, if somebody needs to use the bathroom.

Aidan: Fortunately, I haven’t experienced anything that severe during my three years of high school. In general, I feel pretty safe at Bosco. We have armed guards as well.

Dylan: I’ve had a few lockdowns. I think one was because someone robbed a 7-Eleven near us. But we don’t have any armed officers in my school. We just, when the door’s closed, it’s closed.

DREAM SCHOOLS AND SAFETY SCHOOLS

Jack: At PC, we take security really seriously. It’s one of our pillars, what the school’s based upon. We have guards everywhere. And our school IDs—they don’t even let us inside the building if we’re not wearing them. If, during the school day, they catch you without it on, they write you up.

Brooke: We have retired cops around the school. I think they’re armed, and we do drills every month for fire and lockdown. Toward the beginning of the year we do an evacuation drill. The only time that we were all unprepared for a lockdown was—I don’t think they told the teachers, and they pulled it during passing period. So I got, like, yanked into a classroom by a teacher because no one heard that there was a lockdown because the hallways are loud. I was in a stairway. So we were all very confused. It was just a drill, but they wanted to prepare us for something that’s not going to be expected. It could be during passing period. It could be during lunch.

Rita: Are there cameras?

All, agreed: [Yes, in the common areas such as hallways and libraries. Not in every classroom and not in restrooms.]

Rita: Colleges are super expensive. Does the cost of college impact where you’re planning to apply?

Jack: Cost is definitely important. I’d like to go to an Ivy League school, but that’s expensive. And I want to make this college process the least financially stressful for my parents and myself. You know, like, I don’t want to graduate from college and have to pay student loan debt for the next 30 years.

Rita: So what’s your plan?

Jack: I have this scholarship that PC gave me. I’m working as hard as I possibly can.

Rita: Besides the cost, what about getting in?

Cole: I have a dream school, of course, and I have safeties and level schools. But, like, if I don’t get my dream school, wherever I end up going, I’m going to make the most out of it. And finances definitely influence my thinking. I want [to study] computers, and the best schools for that are in California. My parents saved a lot for my college fund, but it would not cover a school in California.

Nathan: I definitely have people in my family saying “It’s OK, you have time after college to pay it back. Go where you want to go.” But, like you said, do I really want to spend the extra three decades trying to pay it back? Also, for Ivies specifically, with all the protests that have been going on, as someone in the Jewish community, I’m not sure it’s in my best interest to go there anymore. I’m hoping to be a recruited athlete too. So that changes it a little.

Jillian: The way I’m going to approach picking what college, I guess, is whoever’s going to give me the best offer, scholarship-wise. Because, I’ve been looking at a lot of schools in New Jersey, like Ramapo, TCNJ, Rowan. So when I apply to those schools, if I get into their programs, I’m going to see, like, which schools will give me the most money. I don’t have a dream school.

Dylan: I’m kind of in the same boat. Honestly, my plan, once I get all my college decisions, is to line them all up and say, “OK, which one’s going to be the most worth it?” Everyone wants to go to an Ivy League because of the prestige. But obviously, there’s a limit to how much an Ivy League diploma is worth.

Rita: Can we have a show of hands— how many of you are hoping to go to an Ivy League school? [Five students raise their hands.]

Rita: Interesting. Are you guys confident you’re getting in?

Aidan: I’m in a similar boat as Nate, and I also want to play college lacrosse. I have a couple schools lined up with that, and I’m going to see where that takes me. I spent a bunch of my high school time just focusing on playing club lacrosse. So I definitely did not spend as much time on extracurriculars for college. My grades are good, my SATs are good, so I’ll still apply to Ivies and some of those really good schools. If I get in, that’s great. And if I don’t, then that’s fine with me as well.

Rita: So how stressed are you? And how do you manage stress?

Cole: I’m pretty stressed normally. For assignments, I kind of pick and choose my battles. Like if I have a teacher assign me work I don’t have time to do with sports and practice and other activities, then I’ll just do the homework from the strictest teacher, then write an email to the more lenient one, saying, “Hey, can I get extension on this?” and I’ll hope to get it done during my study halls or something.

Rita: So is that because you play a sport?

Cole: Yeah, like wrestling and lacrosse—especially now we really upped our practice. I probably dedicate around 20 to 30 hours for lacrosse and wrestling.

Rita: I don’t know how you guys do it.

Maia: Yeah, I’m very stressed too. I would say in the past few months it has been ramped up to another level because finals are coming next week. I’ve had all my AP exams last month, you know. I’ve had a lot of different things going on, and most of them are for college. It does get very stressful, and I do have these moments where I just shut down because I’m so overwhelmed. But sometimes having that stress actually allows me to perform better. Because it’s like, “OK, I know some of this is my fault,” especially with procrastination.

Jack: Yeah, stress is definitely a factor, especially during April and May, when AP season was rolling around. I was losing my mind trying to cram for all these different tests.

Dylan: I definitely feel like stress is a 10 out of 10 almost, like, at all times. Like, for example, during April and May I had four AP exams, SATs, activities, personal responsibilities, jobs—it’s like all that coming together. It’s definitely a lot to handle, but I like to think of it almost as if I’m grateful for the opportunity to be able to—OK, like, I know everything I’m doing is for a reason: My jobs are for me to get money. AP exams for potential college credit. SAT score and grades—it’s all for a reason, so that’s kind of my motivating factor.

Aidan: Junior year was definitely the most stressful for me. In the fall I had club lacrosse and off-season stuff for Bosco five days a week, then also studying for the SAT. I did a bunch of that late summer and fall, so that was super-stressful and then even now, like, the past couple months studying for the AP test, also the lacrosse season starting up, so my stress is kind of at an all-time high. I don’t think stress is a bad thing at all. You need to have some stress to just make sure you get all your stuff done.

IS IT ALL WORTH IT?

Rita: So you don’t feel like it’s pushing you over the edge?

Caitlyn: I’m going to bring the hippy-dippy life into this. So again, heavy course load, AP, honors classes, testing. I’ve always taken art classes all through high school, and it’s all outside of school. And this year I started taking pottery classes. So Thursday night, the day before the AP history exam, I had a ton of personal stuff going on. All of my studying was, like, last-minute. I had 27 pages of notes. I looked at my mom. She goes, “Give yourself some grace. Give yourself credit. You took this class. You did it well. You’re going to rock it tomorrow. Just go to your pottery class and make something fun. Forget about it for two hours.”

Massimo: I take a different approach, where I feel like if I’m not doing anything, that’s when I get most stressed out because I know there’s stuff I should be doing. So I feel like I perform the best when I have eight things to do tomorrow. And there’s no time for it. That’s the only time when I feel like I can focus and be the best version of myself.

Rita: How do you juggle academics, athletics, extracurriculars, socializing? I mean, you do have some kind of a social life, right?

Massimo: I fully believe in, like, “Work hard, play hard.” So it’s always do as much as you can, Monday through Friday. I don’t touch schoolwork on Saturday. That’s just when I have all of my fun time. But then the rest of the week, it’s a lot of pushing things back so it builds up a little bit. Because it puts pressure on me to actually do things faster, or better.

Jillian: I’m the complete opposite of that. I like to have everything planned out for the week. So, like, when I know I have an assignment due on Friday and it’s Monday, I’ll start it right away. So then I’ll have more time for myself at the end of the week.

Nathan: I’ve been told, “Your job during school is to get good grades.”

Rita: Told by whom?

Nathan: My parents, some of my teachers. “Just get good grades—that’s your job.” So during the summer, that’s when I work and try to make some money. During the school week, I play baseball. So during the spring, I’m obviously in season. But when I’m not, right after school, I do homework and I study. And then if I have any projects, I try to bang them out. And then 9 or 10 o’clock at night, I’ll go ahead and work out or something. And then if I still feel like I didn’t get enough work done, OK, I’ll wake up early before school the next morning.

Aidan: I work part time. I have a job at Lacrosse Unlimited, so I just sit down and string lacrosse heads. But it’s pretty relaxed. I haven’t worked in the past three months just with the season starting. I just go in when I have time. In terms of school and athletics, I think the biggest thing is just having a plan and predetermining when you’re going to do all your work. Like, if I have a free period during school, getting some of that homework done.

Elliott: My biggest thing has always been “Just grit your teeth and bear it.” Like, you just have to do it. By half doing it or putting it off, it’s only going to get worse. Then you’re not going to have as much time to put yourself fully into your sports or your job. So I’ve always just told myself, “There’s probably going to be a late night. You’re going to be tired. But it’s all going to be worth it in the end.”

Evan: Depending on what I’m doing, I can relate to Massimo and a little bit to Elliot. I feel like as long as you get it done and done right, that’s all that matters. I have to balance a lot of stuff. I have my sports, my clubs and my job. And I’m working another two jobs over the summer. I think scheduling and kind of just pushing yourself to your limits, knowing that in the end it’ll be worth it, is what makes it all work out.

Rita: Whom do you admire? Who are your role models?

Dylan: My parents. I’ve seen them, like, going from bottom to top. I’ve seen all the work they’ve put into, like, giving me a private education to make sure I have all the opportunities to succeed in life. So honestly, that’s what I’m striving to do. Almost, like, to make them proud.

Rita: And a private education mattered to you?

Dylan: Honestly, I couldn’t tell you, because from kindergarten to all the way to high school I’ve been in private. My parents are immigrants. They always believed, “OK, you need a private, Catholic education in order to be the best.” Like, obviously that’s not true. Obviously it varies. But, yeah, it’s just their point of view.

Nathan: My dad. He works hard. He wakes up in the mornings. He goes to the gym. He works 9 to 5, then comes home. And I have two little brothers. He’s always there, full of energy, being who they need him to be.

Aidan: Definitely my parents. I’ve really looked up to my dad and mom my whole life. They gave a good example of who I want to be and how I want to act. Also my coaches. I spent a ton of time with my high school and club coaches. I think through lacrosse I’ve learned how to be a better person. They’ve really taught me all the skills I’ll need to be successful later in life.

A ROLE MODEL—WITH CHICKENS

Caitlyn: My role model is definitely my aunt, Sam. She lives in the middle of nowhere in the countryside. She’s single. She has chickens. She has the most amazing work-life balance I’ve ever seen. She works in marketing and advertising—it’s a lot of yelling at people. But she still has fun. I really admire her because she works from home. She has her work hours during the day. Then, in the evening, she does whatever she wants. Like, she loves gardening. She loves great food. She would take me out to the city on my birthday, and we’d go to an art museum or an amazing restaurant.

Massimo: AOC [Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez]. A lot of her message is just don’t let people push you around. Stand up for what you believe in and work hard doing it.

Elliott: I would have to say it’s my older brother. He’s always been there for me. He’s very smart, very outgoing. Watching him grow up and go to high school and now college—I try to model myself after him.

Evan: I really look up to my mom and my dad. My mom, she had my brother in high school. And she still worked, graduated college. She went from living in Queens to owning a house in New Jersey. My dad, same thing with him. He grew up in Brooklyn. He worked, worked, and worked. He’s also a rapper in Colombia. He has a full-time job, and then they still manage to have time for me.

Jillian: My role model is my brother too. He just finished his first year of college. He was able to balance, like, good grades, and he decided on a major, and he was in frat. And he did baseball. I just look up to him.

Cole: Definitely my dad. He was never good at testing, and he became a doctor somehow. And he works hard. He gets up every morning to work out, and he comes home to me and my brother. He’s supportive—he texted me before this. He’s just always there for me. I appreciate it. He’s an anesthesiologist.

Maia: My older sister. She just finished her sophomore year at the University of Delaware. She’s already president of the hospitality club. She’s working, I think, two jobs this summer and through her junior year to help pay for college. And she’s living in her own apartment. And my parents— even in times of struggle they’ve been able to make opportunities for me. Like, this fellowship that I wanted with an organization that fights anti-Semitism. It’s something I’m passionate about. They allowed me to do it and were really supportive.

Brooke: The seniors, when I was a freshman and sophomore, really made an impact on my life. Seeing the things they were doing motivated me to want to do the same things, and I keep in contact with them. Whenever I achieve something I want to celebrate, they’re right there with me. Like, “Good for you!” Even though they’ve moved on. I don’t have siblings. Seeing that they still care about me like a little sister is heartwarming.

Jack: Definitely my parents. They work really hard. Even when they’re extremely tired and they’re struggling, they still find time for me and my little sister.

Rita: We didn’t talk about drugs and alcohol. Is this an issue in school or is it kind of, like, passé?

Jillian: At my school we just got vape detectors in the bathrooms, and students still go in there and vape. I think it is a big issue. Even freshmen—like, they’re 13, 14 years old. They think they’re so cool. We also do random drug testing. You’ll get called down to the office or to the nurse, and the guidance counselor’s in there.

Cole: In my high school they’re cracking down on vaping, definitely. But my brother was in middle school, and the middle schoolers, he told me, are pretty bad in the bathroom. Yeah, those are 11-to-12- year-olds.

Maia: Vaping and weed are problems at my school. That’s part of the reason they shut down the bathrooms. Not only because of all the destruction, but because, even if we’re coming in at 7:45 in the morning, if you go into the bathroom, there’s a huge group of girls in the stalls, smoking. Now there can only be five people in the bathroom at a time, and if someone’s caught smoking or whatever, they know who was in the bathroom at that time because you scan in.

Jack: I feel like drugs aren’t really a problem anymore in my school. But freshman year, people would go into the bathrooms and vape and stuff. I remember, towards the end of my freshman year, there was one student that the deans went through his locker and found a backpack full of drugs. They were, like, dumping all the drugs out of his backpack. There were cops. But I feel like since then, they’ve really cracked down on stuff like that.

Brooke: Since middle school, we’ve had a lot of assemblies saying, “This is why vaping’s bad—don’t do it.” But it doesn’t reach a target audience. It goes to the people that know that it’s bad. It doesn’t really grab the attention of people who don’t really care. I’ve heard people in school saying, “I can’t believe I got suspended for vaping.” What do you mean you can’t believe it? And then they do, like, drug searches with dogs, so we have to evacuate the school, all the canines are in every classroom checking all the lockers, the hallways, everything.

Evan: Our security guard sometimes does random checks in the bathroom. We have the vape detectors too.

Nathan: So vaping and smoking weed definitely happens in my school. It’s not so widespread anymore. But, like, everyone knows the people that do it. The administration also knows. So we don’t have vape detectors in the bathroom. But on the cameras, if they see those individuals walking in, or they happen to be walking by the hall when it happens, then they’ll go into the bathroom—patting them down, checking and confiscating it.

Cole: My school has implemented a smart pass on our computers, so if we want to go to the bathroom, we have to fill out a pass and it times us. Like, we’re only allowed five, six minutes in the bathroom. The teachers—we have, like, hall monitors—have the application open on the computers, and it’ll flag us if we’re over our limit.

10,000 POUNDS OF CLOTHES

Rita: Where do you and your friends hang out when you’re not in school—each other’s houses?

Elliott: A lot of it now that we can drive is just, like, driving around together. We love to listen to music. We just drive around, and then we’ll go get ice cream or eat dinne’. I’m a big Van Dyk’s girl; I love their chocolate peanut butter.

Nathan: My friends and I, ever since middle school, we’ve been going to this big turf complex, the Doug Parcells complex. It’s huge—like two soccer fields worth of turf—and we play spikeball, and we take it pretty seriously. Then we go get McDonald’s or Wendy’s or Chipotle or something, then go to someone’s house.

Jillian: We usually just hang out at each other’s houses. In the summertime, a lot of us have pools, so we’ll go to each other’s houses to swim. Between me and my best friend, I can drive; she doesn’t have her license yet, so we go out to eat a lot. We like to get Starbucks and Chipotle and Wendy’s and stuff.

Caitlyn: I’m a big fan of taking my friends on long walks and hikes. I know they probably hate me for it, but I love walking. My parents always took us on walks when we were kids. Hanging out with a friend or a group of friends, I always find a way to sneak in a walk around the neighborhood, even if it’s, like, 9 o’clock at night, just to chat and catch up.

Massimo: We’ve been playing a lot of pickleball recently. That’s been a big Ramsey thing.

Rita: How do you feel about social media?

Dylan: Honestly, I use social media a lot. I feel like it’s a good—it’s a nice dopamine hit. After a long day of studying, when it’s 10 p.m. and I should be sleeping, I might as well scroll on TikTok for 20 minutes or so. Obviously, you have to learn how to restrict yourself.

Maia: I like using social media. I’m on everything, you know. If I’m in bed and I have nothing to do, I will scroll on TikTok. It’s just a nice way to connect with my friends, even when we’re not together. I use it a lot, because I’m a very outspoken person when it comes to some things—like politics and stuff like that. Nothing crazy.

Aidan: I think social media is a really good tool to, you know, connect with your friends, meet new people, and also it’s a great source of entertainment. But like with anything, you just have to use it in moderation.

Elliott: I love Instagram, because—like, I go on mission trips across the country, and I love being able to be, like, “Oh, like, follow me on Instagram,” and then I get to keep in touch with what they’re doing and what’s important to them, and they get to see what I’m up to. I love being able to comment on someone’s post and be like, “Oh, so great—miss you!” I think it’s a good connector.

Rita: You do mission trips?

Elliott: Yeah. Freshman year I went out to Montana. Me and my youth group, we volunteered at a bargain center. It was in Billings, and we helped sort through, like, 10,000 pounds of clothes. It’s just this place where they can go and buy discount clothing.

Rita: Let’s fast-forward 10 years. What are you going to be doing?

Maia: I’ll be a successful attorney. Or maybe I’ll still be in law school—or taking my LSATs for the third time. [Laughs.]

Cole: Hopefully fishing on my own boat. I definitely want to do something with computers, so hopefully I’ll have a job at some big tech company.

Jillian: I hope to be a labor-and-delivery nurse.

Evan: I’m hoping to start my own architecture firm.

Elliot: I want to be an athletic trainer for a professional sports team. I’m a big hockey fan, so probably an NHL team.

Massimo: I hope to be in a residency after med school. I really like plastic surgery right now.

Caitlyn: At 11 a.m. on a Tuesday, I’m telling a kindergartener not to stick fingers up his nose, and to focus on his splatter book instead.

Nathan: I also hope to be in residency, but I also hope to be on the verge of starting a family. That’s also important.

Aidan: The same as these two: residency.

Dylan: Hopefully doing something in neurology.

Jack: Ideally, I guess I’d be trying to jump-start my own business.

Brooke: Hopefully a pharmacist—and hopefully happy.

 

Editor’s Note: Special thanks to Kirsten Meehan, Darius Amos and Stephen Vitarbo.