As spring rolls around, seniors begin to make their final decisions on where in life they plan to go. Graduation lurks around the corner and senioritis kicks in. It is a time that many students have looked forward to for the past 12 years of required education. Some plan to pursue higher education, others enlist to serve our country, and others are heading straight into the workforce. Wherever seniors are going, Floyd Central is sending them off with a smile and wave. 

College Decisions

A large number of seniors intend to go into college and there are a variety of schools that FC students want to attend. For some students, the choice of which college came down to just the appearance of the campus.

“I chose the University of Louisville because I prefer their campus over IU Bloomington,” said senior Collin Naville. 

The University of Louisville is popular for many FC students. Despite being in Kentucky, students living in Floyd county and neighboring counties receive in-state tuition rates. 

“Honestly, I grew up in Louisville. I’m a Louisville native. My dad works there, so I’ll be able to get free tuition. That was pretty much the biggest pro,” said senior Silas Turner.

Other students prioritize how the college treats them rather than the campus. Some students enjoy feeling a personal connection and like they belong at that school. Additionally, most students plan to go into the workforce after receiving their desired degrees. So a college that can guarantee a career for their students is essential to some.

“It [Trine University] was kind of like a smaller school and like, whenever I went on there for like visits, they made me feel like a person, not just a number, like big universities, and then also it has a 99% ROI, so I know I can get a job or go to grad school immediately,” stated senior Stephen O’Leary.

For some students, finding a college that was “the one” was a difficulty and challenge, but one that they defeated. 

“[I’m attending] Miami University. It wasn’t because the university is out of state, it’s only 10 minutes past the Indiana border. The reason I chose the school was just because I didn’t, there wasn’t like a school in Indiana that I think fit me. I tried small with UE, I tried IU, and then I also tried Ball State. And just none of them felt like the right fit, so I decided to do Miami,” said senior Landon Siebert.

College Majors

Students at FC have many different ideas on what they want to do. Ranging from teaching to marine biology, there seems to be something for everyone at FC.

For example, some students want to go into healthcare while others want to take a more creative route.

“It [Comic writing and storyboarding] combines visual arts and storytelling into storytelling through visual arts, which I find really cool,” says senior Daphne McKim on why her career path interests her.

While some students such as McKim or senior Teagan Orr, who wants to go into digital design, are taking a more creative path, some are taking a different type of path.

“I was a football manager at my old high school for my freshman year, and I discovered it [kinesiology] through their physical therapist there. It seemed like something I was really interested in, and I was wanting to pursue that, ’cause right now, I’m in a physical therapy class through IVY Tech. So I’m planning on pursuing that through college,” says senior Luna LaJoie.

While some students are more hands on, some also want to make a difference in unexpected ways.

“I want to discover new species, but I also want to help find ways to save the coral reefs and stuff like that. I did an essay in English this year on coral bleaching and how we could try and fix it,” says senior Lola Beard on Marine Biology and Marine Mammalogy.

For other students, engineering is the path that they plan to travel down.

Education has been a journey for many seniors, one soon to continue after high school. However, some seniors plan to return to high school as a teacher, rather than a student.

“I’m going to be majoring in middle and high school education. I chose this major because I have been wanting to be a teacher ever since I was a child, and I discovered a passion in French my freshman year of high school and decided that I wanted to be a high school French teacher,” said Naville.

No matter what students want to major in, students prepare for their future through college decisions and remembering how FC has made an impact on them.

FC’s Impact 

FC has many different ways to prepare students for college. From requiring classes such as prep for college and career to posting scholarships on Google Classrooms, there are several opportunities for students to partake in.

Many students say that FC made a positive impact on their college preparation.

“I do think that FC has prepared me for college. I feel like there were a lot of opportunities I passed up to prepare myself even more, but as far as classes I have taken and what I have been introduced to I feel like I am pretty college ready,” said Naville.

Meanwhile, other students have been personally helped by their counselors in their journeys into college.

“Mr. Clark has been absolutely fantastic. Mr. Clark, he was pretty nice. He helped me with the process. It’s definitely nice that I’m not paying out of state tuition, but I think the whole office has definitely been supportive. They’ve brought me in for like specific scholarships. They said ‘hey, you might, it might be worth looking into this,’” said Siebert.

Students have been prepared by the office and admin alike, but certain teachers have helped seniors in their college journeys and their decisions.

“One of my many teachers that made a huge impact on my experience at FC is Ms. Cain because she has been someone who I look up to and I am very glad that she teaches French here,” said Naville, who is planning to become a French teacher.

Language teachers have left lasting impacts on their students, but even FC’s elective teachers have shown a light on their students.

“I’d probably say Mrs. Bibelhauser. She was just fun and like, made it [her class] pretty easy,” said O’Leary.

For some students, the list of teachers is difficult to list in one breath.

“I obviously have to shout out Ms. Hampton. She’s been one of my favorite teachers for four years. I’m constantly in her classroom. She influenced me to actually take up a minor in music. So I have an interview for that this Saturday. Obviously Mrs. Lone and Mrs. Mac have all been science teachers in the school that have really helped me gain a passion,” said Siebert. 

Without teachers, some students may have not felt welcomed in the halls of FC.

“I had a couple teachers that did make a tremendous impact on me. My first year coming to Floyd, I would say Ms. Nash. She was very welcoming. She helped me out a lot. And I would probably also say, Ms. Mayer Sebastian, because she really helped me get through my first year of going to the school, being in a new school, and try and help me figure out what I want to do in my life,” said LaJoie.

It was not just teachers and counselors who helped the students of FC, but even our own librarian, Tim Romig.

“Mr Romig, in the library, just because I’ve been a TA [teacher’s assistant] here for all four years of high school and I kind of am able to talk a lot of stuff out with him, candidly than I would with any of my other teachers, and I’m just in here a lot. So yeah, he’s my pal,” said Turner.

Turner was not the only student to be impacted by Romig.

“I would say, um, probably Tim Romig, the library specialist. Um, I would also say Brigg Banet and the, uh, physics teacher and Ms. Sloane, the anatomy psychology teacher,” said senior Sadie Coddington. 

Senior Advice

With every senior taking a different path, they have all had to make decisions that have spanned from easy to outright difficult. These choices have left them smarter than before and they have learned something new.

Some students struggle with finding the right college for them. There are thousands of colleges to choose from and so many to see, discovering the best fit can be challenging.

“The way I found Miami was we did the college fair two years ago, not the one this past year, it was kind of weak, mostly IU, but I went and I grabbed a pamphlet from every single college– not every single, but I grabbed stuff from everything that interests me. And I was like, and I wasn’t interested in Miami. I looked at their booth and like, whatever, I went through, I looked through all the books, and my mom was like, ‘I know you’ve said that you don’t want to go to a super small school and you don’t want to go to a super big school. Here’s something in between. We’ll take a look at it,’” said Siebert.

For some students, they want to turn back to education and pursue a teaching degree. There are many ways students even now can prepare for a major in elementary or secondary education, even at FC.

“I recommend taking the Principles of Teaching and Teaching and Learning class because it will show you what it is like to be in the classroom and you also can learn what teachers do from day to day, whether that be lesson planning or student behavior management, classroom management, and all kinds of other things,” said Naville. 

Even not just with teaching, students are able to view the entire roster of classes to decide what classes may be a great fit for them. There are many unique classes for underclassmen to try, especially if they are unsure about where they plan to go in life.

As FC prepares to wave off their class of graduating seniors, many seniors are taking one last glance around the school. The four years may be coming to an end, but FC’s impact has set up these seniors and changed the course of their lives. Whether it is their teachers motivating them to pursue a major or classes introducing students to their passions, college awaits many seniors and much of the Class of 2026 will become the Class of 2030.