The Senior Year That Wasn’t: Jun Young O.

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Many of us would agree that our Senior year of High School was one of the most memorable years of our life. Between graduation, college acceptance letters, Prom, and the knowledge that it’s the last year spent in your hometown (and parents’ house no less), it’s a time that we both never want to end, and can’t get past soon enough. Unfortunately, for the class of 2020, most of these traditions were devastated by COVID-19. In this series, we chat with Seniors to find out the extent of the impact to their final year of High School and what they’ve done to salvage those memories.

Meet Jun Young O., an 18 year old senior student at AISB School – Hope International. Originally from South Korea, Jun Young is the President of the Student Council of AISB School – Hope International.

Can you briefly walk us through how COVID-19 has evolved for you, personally?

I remember watching the news about a new disease spreading from Wuhan in early January. I was there just a couple months ago for a volleyball game exchange, so I thought that it was no big deal. But I realized that the virus was more serious when the school extended our vacation. I ended up flying to South Korea to avoid the virus. It’s too bad that the schools and facilities had to close due to this outbreak. I’m just hoping to bowl and hang out with my friends without the mask.

Senior year of High School is supposed to be one of the most memorable years of your life. Unfortunately, however, you and your peers aren’t getting to enjoy all that it has to offer. Can you tell us a bit about that? What are the conversations that are happening amongst your friends right now?

It’s too bad that my senior year had to go down like this. None of my friends thought this was going to happen. We planned our senior trip throughout the year, anxiously waiting for that day to finally arrive. Now it’s all canceled. But we’re still trying to stay positive. It’s nice to take a quiz on the couch, my friends and I talk a lot about funny things that happened while we’re in the house with our family. It’s nice to be able to talk to my friends amid the outbreak.

What activities were you most looking forward to this year that have either been postponed or canceled?

The senior trip. A lot of my classmates were disappointed when the airline company mailed us to give us a refund. We are supposed to be surfing and drinking coconut water on the beach by now. We still don’t know if we can hold the last high school prom. But thankfully, there is no news on canceling our graduation ceremony yet, I really hope that won’t happen.

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Has COVID-19 affected your ability to graduate at all? Are you able to take all the necessary High School Exit Exams, College Placement Tests, etc.

Unfortunately, the March and May SATs were canceled. I was planning to take the test to raise my grade. But the cancellation also gives me more time to focus on the AP exams and applications for Korean universities. Thankfully, my school is supporting a new e-learning system, so I should have no problem graduating with a high school diploma.

Has COVID-19 affected your plans for after graduation? If so, how?

My friend and I were planning to take a tour of Korea after graduation. Since I grew up in China, I didn’t get enough chance to travel around my country, so we thought it would be fun to travel to Korea just by ourselves. I hope that this outbreak will settle down before the trip. COVID-19 also gave me an opportunity to take a closer look at Korea while I’m here and allow me to have a deeper understanding of the people and the culture. It’s a fun experience.

Despite all that has happened this year, have you done anything to try and salvage these last few months of your High School experience? Have you and your friends been able to “hang out” on Zoom or FaceTime? Have you made backup plans for a Prom in case it gets officially canceled?

I don’t like using Zoom to call my friends. It’s like hanging out at the school during the weekends. I’d like to go back to school as soon as possible and prepare the events to compensate for the quarantine.

Is there anything else you’d like to include that hasn’t been asked?

Staying positive and appreciating what I have has helped me a lot during the quarantine. I’d like to suggest the same for the fellow seniors and students in Beijing!

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Photos: Courtesy of Jun Young O., Unsplash

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