COVID-19 has become a worldwide pandemic, and almost everyone has been affected by it either directly or indirectly. It is crazy to think that it has been almost a year since the outbreak began, and the Class of 2020 graduated well over six months ago. The seniors of 2020 had many obstacles throughout their last year of high school that continue even today. With all of them still navigating through their first year of college, a few of them have shared a glimpse into their lives now:

Sam Buchanan (attending Mississippi State University)

“I attend Mississippi State, and I am a rush chair for my fraternity. Corona has modified my college experience just like it has modified all of y’all’s life such as: limited social function, not going to sporting events, online school, and many other things. However I will say that COVID has not kept any of my friends from enjoying college. We are just happy to be in college and don’t know anything different than corona regulations in college. The older students tell us we don’t even understand what a true college experience is like, but we have no idea what we are missing out on.

Looking back on hig hschool, you realize how small it really is. The only thing I wish I had done differently would be living in the moment and not getting bogged down by minuscule events. What I mean by that is life is going to keep on going no matter if you win the big game or not. Be positive everyday and live in the present, because time is limited. Enjoy the people around you, because you will remember the little things more than you know.

To the seniors, I love y’all! I have a ton of little bits and pieces of advice that I could give to y’all, but I’m only going to give one piece of advice to stress the importance of this topic. Nail down your faith. In college, there will be a party every night, and your parents are not waking you up to go to church on Sunday. Stay rooted in the gospel. This does not mean I am perfect at this nor is anyone, but God will sustain and hold you through all things if you simply allow him. Please seniors, take your summer break to relentlessly follow God, because you will be faced with temptation at every turn. I hate to make college sound like that, but it is the truth. Your friends and campus will recognize your dedication to Christ and will be moved by it. Trust God’s word no matter and remember you’ll never regret going to church. Finally to the seniors in regard to COVID… make them kick you out for capacity! Go Prep!”

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Peyton Dunn (attending the Univeristy of Louisiana Monroe)

“Football takes up a lot of my time but I’m really involved with the North Monroe Baptist Church. In regards to COVID, any big activities, parties, and formal on campus have been shut down.

I wouldn’t say I had any regrets from senior year, but I wish I had become closer to my classmates and not focused on college and trying to leave high school as much.

I would just say to seniors now to try and enjoy your senior year because it flies by and make the best of this COVID time. It’s affecting everyone’s school and social life, and we just have to adapt for the time being.”

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Maggie Muenzenmay (attending Mississippi State University)

“COVID has obviously made my freshman experience different as far as school and social events go, but it has also made me more outgoing and willing to try new things that I wouldn’t have normally considered doing. Right now, I’m just involved in a sorority and a few honors society clubs, but I hope to join more clubs as covid cases go down.

If I had one regret from my time at Prep, I mainly wish that I had done more with it and gotten more involved. So to the seniors:take advantage of every opportunity, even if it’s just going out with their high school friends or trying out a new club.”

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Lauren Nickles (attending Mississippi State University)

“I’m involved in Greek life and RUF, which stands for Reformed University Fellowship. COVID has not only affected my decision to go to State, but also my freshman year. It’s caused a lot of my classes to be online, and we aren’t allowed to have social events or participate in as many activities such as date parties or philanthropy events.

The advice I would give the seniors now is that they don’t need to take anything for granted.”

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JC Polk (attending the University of Mississippi)

“Because of COVID-19, my classes have mostly been online so that has made things a bit more difficult, but I’m still having a great time. The free time and new people I’ve met is the best part of college so far. If I could relive one thing from highschool at Prep, it would be the lunches in the cafeteria. 

Advice I would give to seniors this year: There’s no point in feeling sorry for yourself; you’re not the only ones going through this. Make the best of it. This year will be as extraordinary as each of you make it out to be.”