Though summer is associated with the end of the school year, nothing feels as concrete as the turning into July, a month without school, worries or stress. Yet admittedly, many like Christine Cheng ‘21. have toned down the rigor and concentration that they had dedicated in the beginning of the year and so “summer” feels just like an extension of the school year since May.

“It was just hard for me to care the same when I’m not scrambling to study for a test the night before,” Cheng says. She describes her days pre-summer as “not too different from what I’m doing now. Now my time is spent on making up for all my cancelled [activities] rather than doing busy work.”

Others feel that the location was the only change made to schools in quarantine. The challenges that would have been faced through tests and quizzes, now were simply manifested online. Other students, such as Emily Dong ’21 have been contributing the same attention and care as they would the in-person school day.  Emily says she’s felt “online burn out” in place of typical school stress.

Nevertheless, while graduating seniors are stuck with postponement and sectioning of graduation, rising seniors have the cancellation of vital extra curricular activities as well as a season of sports. For many, it’s a race to make the most out of opportunities offered online in place of the ones they have lost.

Corona has forced students to stay dormant, but for some the feeling isn’t suffocating. “For me, [quarantine has] given me more time to do what I want,” says Emily. She explains that with the time she previously would have spent socializing outdoors, she’s been able to dedicate picking up a job and some online courses in interesting subjects. “This may be a stretch but maybe this was a blessing in disguise to some degree.”

However juniors spend their time, this summer has marked a new change in school culture and life. There are still two months left but the next school year is sure to be unlike any before as students grapple with the challenges of social distancing.