Class of 2017, one of the most spirited classes, according to the majority of the school, is soon to  graduate on May 18th. I think we can all agree that when the class of 2017 graduates, Air Academy will lose many of our teammates and friends.

The Class of 2017 has had great spirit throughout all four years, from class color days to sporting events.

When I asked Dr. Beers, the head of College and Careers,  what he will miss most about the class of 2017, he replied with, “I think they have a lot of school spirit, like every year kids have school spirit. But this year it seems that these kids are a closer knit bunch. They support activities or events that they aren’t even involved in at all, like students going to a play, or students going to a baseball game, and they have no other interest rather than they just want to support their classmates.”

Assistant Principal, Sean Whitson, also agrees that the class of 2017 is very close and well connected with one another.

Head Principal Dan Olsen says, “The class as a whole has been a ton of fun to be around. They are funny, but respectful in the same way. They push the envelope but not too far, I use the Mr. Kadet Pagent for an example.” Mr. Kadet is a boys pagent that Air Academy holds and only senior make contestants can run for. In the past, the school administration has had to cancel, due to the students being inappropriate. But Principal Olsen says, “This year the guys did a great job of having fun and being silly and goofy, but not being inappropriate. I think that’s been, in my option, a good synopsis of the seniors, they’ve represented Air Academy well in everything they’ve done including the arts, academics and band.”

Principal Olsen says that the class of 2017 is also very academically inclined, “with three students being selected for MIT and other top schools in the country.” He also says,  “But they’ve never really taken themselves super serious, and I think it’s been a really good balance.” The class of 2017 knows how to have fun and still reach their full potential!  

This class never fails to impress their peers with lending a helping hand. Ever since I arrived at AAHS, I never felt alone; they created a safe environment for us newbies to grow. We took the moments we had with the seniors for granted, but now that they have  only 1 week left we can’t take those special moments for granted. They are leaving some big shoes to fill, but they taught us how to fill them. They will be truly missed by all their peers. Farewell class of 2017! From all the seniors that I’ve grown close to through lacrosse, FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes), and much more, Air Academy will miss you!