There I was, standing in front of the Wisconsin State Capitol building, decked out in a suit and a Wisconsin State Senate Scholar badge.

A year ago, if you told me I went to the Wisconsin State Senate, I probably would have laughed at you. 

Before junior year, I was an average student. I showed up to class, listened to the expectations, and did what was expected of me. But then I learned that in order to be a leader, you have to go above and beyond what’s expected of you. That in itself is hard, but not impossible. From my hard work, I managed to become Chief Editor of the North Star this year. I love writing articles, meeting new people through interviewing, and bringing topics to light through journalism, so I was overjoyed when I got the news that I was chosen to be Chief Editor. This year was hard as a newly appointed leader, but I learned a lot of things, and I’m extremely grateful for the lessons I learned. I’m excited to continue leading the North Star next year (even without my favorite teacher).

I also managed to go to the Wisconsin State Senate as a Senate Scholar, and I learned a lot about politics and government during the week that I was there. I’m forever grateful for all of the friends I made, people and politicians I met, and the experience I got from the wonderful program. Thank you to Dr. Tammy Wehrle for overseeing the program, and making our experience at the Wisconsin State Capitol amazing.

This year, I expected everything here with me now will stay: My friends, my happiness, my family, my teachers.

 But I learned sad news this year: Not everything can stay.

This year, I learned my favorite teacher, Jason Cummings, is leaving. My friends are graduating, and even though I’ll see them again, I’ll miss seeing them in the hallways. It shocks me to say that next year, I’ll be in their shoes, walking across the stage to graduate.

I managed to keep up with my grades, but junior year was hard, mentally and physically. Working towards my goals was challenging, but I got here, and all the hard work was worth it.

Junior year also helped bring out the spark in me, politically and as a person.

I’ve always known that I wanted to go into politics. At eight years old, I knew that I wanted to change the world, but where would I even start? Junior year of high school is when I answered that question: I want to run for Congress.

Maybe I’ll go even farther than Congress. I won’t know until I am standing there in the United States Congress, then standing there in the White House.