I’ve gone to a public school from the time I was in 2nd grade to the middle of my junior year and part-time since then. Before Williamsburg, I didn’t feel like I fit into the typical class. I was the ultimate teacher’s pet and participated in class a lot more than others. This made my teachers happy, but I was made fun of for it. Even though I was fine most of the time in class, I couldn’t get my work

done as fast as others and was late in every way possible. I liked to learn, but the process of getting through school was downright painful. Having ADD, most of my teachers simply couldn’t accommodate me for my needs. I was what others described as a square peg trying to fit into a round hole. I started failing some classes because I couldn’t keep up with the increasing amounts busywork and my teachers could do very little to accommodate for me because of the public school system. That’s when my parents and I knew it was time to make a change.

 

Soon we found Williamsburg and enrolled for the 2nd semester of my junior year. I remember being shocked my first day in class. Everybody was expressing how happy they were to be back from break instead of the usual disappointment of being back in school. “Hands” were being raised one after another without hesitation as students shared their thoughts and feelings on the lesson. People were actually happy to be there to learn and that blew my mind. It was incredibly refreshing to be part of a class with other kids like me. I felt like I could actually be part of the class and participate without the worry of being ridiculed or embarrassed.

 

My time at Williamsburg has only gotten better as time’s gone on. The teachers I’ve had here have become some of the best teachers I have ever had. They love what they teach and it reflects in every single class. Every one of them has been accommodating to my needs without being held back by public school laws. Even though this school has been a better fit for me, it doesn’t make it any less challenging. In fact, content-wise, it’s been much more challenging than my public school. However, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. As I mentioned earlier, I love to learn. The challenging parts of Williamsburg have always been presented in a way that I can understand and learn about without the stress of the standard, one-size-fits-all system that the public schools have adopted. If I had the chance to go back and decide whether or not to do Williamsburg, there would be no decision. Williamsburg will always be my first choice!

 

I’ve pretty much said what I’ve wanted to say about how great Williamsburg is, so I’ll just leave you with some of my favorite quotes about life in general. ☺

 

“Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened!” -Dr. Seuss

 

“There are so many people out there who will tell you that you can’t. What you’ve got to do is turn around and say ‘watch me’.” -Unknown

 

"Love the life you live, and live the life you love." -Bob Marley

 

 

Motto: “Do not follow where the path may lead. Go, instead, where there is no path and leave a trail.” 

 

This is pretty much already what my life motto is. I’ve never exactly been one to follow the crowd in a lot of ways. I have my own sense of style and like a wide variety of music (one favorite being big band swing). I play trumpet and love to wear costumes for spirit days. I am that one friend that will embarrass the heck out of you when I hear my favorite song in a public place and start to dance. I don’t do these things to try to be different or strange- I do them because that’s just who I am and I won’t change because someone else thinks I’m too weird. Embrace yourself and what you love! Don’t ever change in order to be “normal” or to “fit in”. Let me tell you a secret: there is no such thing as normal! You be you and don’t worry about what other people because chances are they don’t have a clue what is normal either ;)

 

The future… scary, isn’t it? Well, it’s not as scary if you have a plan!  

After working over the summer, I plan on attending Utah State University. I’m not sure what I’d like to major in yet, so I’m just going to take some generals and find what I like. After my first year, I have plans to serve as an LDS missionary. I’m looking forward to whatever the future holds!