BY ANNA HOLLESEN
Cecilia Teigeiro, also known as “CC”, is a senior here at Beverly High School. CC is a very involved student and she came here to share her insights on school life, along with the many things that make high school memorable. She is going to be sharing her experiences with the school and the many activities she has taken part in. She has come a long way from starting high school in 2020, as she is now part of the graduating class of 2024.
Panther News: First, what did you enjoy about Beverly High School?
CC: Ooh, I do like all the opportunities here. Like, some, like, private schools don’t have music departments or don’t offer certain classes. But since we’re a public school, we offer, like, everything. So I’ve definitely been able to try a whole bunch of stuff.
Panther News: What about these classes did you like? Since it seems like you were interested in music, did you do any music or extracurricular activities here?
CC: Yes, I did a lot. I’ve done band and jazz band. I’ve also helped out at the middle school a little bit. I run a tiny bit on my own, so I think it’s been fun. Another good thing about BHS is like, you can follow your passion or interest as deep as you go. Like if you want to go into art, you can join AP art, there is studio art. There’s all different kinds of stuff. If you want to follow science, you can do that. But I’ve been able to follow music a lot. I’ve been taking music theory this year, the history of rock, and all the performing groups I’m in. I’ve been able to just really follow that.
Panther News: Is there anything you disliked about high school?
CC: Yes. I feel like sometimes this high school doesn’t focus on things I would like it to focus on, especially, of course, my interests, my life experiences, and my opinions are skewed to my beliefs. But come on, I know a lot of the recent policies have been changed a lot this final year, my senior year, and like, we focused a lot on phones and passes during class. But I feel like vaping is a massive problem here and it’s kind of hasn’t been addressed as much as I’d like it to. Like I’ve gotten yelled at just for being in the bathroom while someone’s vaping, even though I’m just like using the bathroom.
Panther News: Along with that, did you have any issues during high school, or like, did any teachers or people bring you issues?
CC: Yes, I had one French teacher. I won’t drop their name, but he definitely made me very uncomfortable. He was very political. I felt like my French regressed a lot. And like before him, I loved French, I’d been taking it since middle school. I wanted to continue it. I’d gotten all A’s in French. I was pretty good at French. Even through his year. Oops, their year, that slipped. Um, I enjoyed it. But after being in that class I just by association just felt uncomfortable with French and like just lost my passion for it.
Panther News: Opposite to that, were there any teachers that you really liked and helped your experience in growing here at the high school?
CC: Ooh yeah, I would definitely say Mrs. Brotherton’s really just inspiring to me. She was the first AP class I took because my sophomore year the only AP class offered to sophomores was AP US History at the time. So she really helped me, like learn how AP questions are phrased and what the workload of an AP class is like. So she’s definitely been very helpful.
Panther News: You started high school in 2020, right?
CC: Mhm.
Panther News: And since that year is the first year of COVID, how did that affect the rest of your high school being virtual the first year?
CC: It was not fun at all. I remember the adjustment for me was very, very difficult because in most years, like there’s freshman orientation and eighth-grade move-up night, and all of these events are supposed to get the incoming freshmen more familiar with the school. But my year, we were remote for the first half and then we started going in-person halfway through the year. As a freshman, I had never been shown the school or like never attended these classes. I’ve already been for half a year. So that first day when I was in person, I was so lost and nervous because I had nowhere to go and everyone there other than my grade in the school had been there and knew what it was like, at least a little. So I definitely felt my class freshman year was kind of forgotten about and missed everything else.
Panther News: Did your friends help you along with that first year and in the following years?
CC: Definitely did. I think it was helpful because we all went through it together. Like my entire class was bonded a little bit because we were kind of just tossed into high school as they were focusing on just getting people in person. It didn’t really focus on helping us be in person at high school, but we definitely got more comfortable sophomore year, and it went much smoother for me and all my friends. So we definitely went and grew together as we went on.
Panther News: Lastly, do you have any advice for younger students or future high school students?
CC: Ooh yes, I do the freshman orientation. I’ve been a tour guide for the past two years, and I always tell them, join something like High school is very much like trying things before you go into college, before you go into the real world. And it’s so important to just be part of a sport, a club, a performing group, literally anything, just so you can experience things, figure out what you like, make friends, and find your passion.
Panther News: Thank you, CC.
CC: Of course!
