Alexya and Brynna Kern, now seniors, decided to graduate early for the 2020-2021 school year. Alexya was involved in cheerleading and choir, while Brynna was involved in Colorguard, band, and choir only during her freshman year.

The Kerns decided to graduate early due to their own high school indifferences. They also felt they were up to the challenge of gathering everything they needed to do so. In order to graduate early, they had to focus on their core classes. “Sophomore year I had to take two science classes and personal finance,” B. Kern said. 

They said they were unsure if other students would choose to graduate early because of the possibility of feeling “left out” and “out of place.” “Some feel like they are lacking the high school experience,” A. Kern said. 

After high school, B. Kern plans to stay in Atlantic and attend a community college at first, and then she wants to seak out higher education. On the other hand, A. Kern would like to move away from Atlantic to attend college.  

In order for other students to graduate high school early, they need to “keep personal goals, keep themselves accountable, know how much assignments are worth” and ignore the peer pressure of friends and other students. “Stop slacking off. Focus on getting things done and doing things right. It won’t be hard,” the Kerns said. They also said that it’s important for students to “know their worth” during their high school years.