T + D = The BGQ 2023 Seniors

If I’m being honest, I’ve started writing this goodbye letter to BGQ and Central about ten times. And every time, I’ve hated it more and more because that’s not how I wanna write this. Being asked to write something specific for a class you love can be a challenge. You’d be ecstatic, but that’s probably not the bang you wanna go out with your senior year. I also didn’t want to make it the same “My favorite part of highschool was….” format, So I decided on this as a mini compromise.

That being said, high school for me started off with my parents trying to mold me into something academically fitting, someone that colleges would love. Meaning no grades below a C+ and a solid 3.0. Well, let’s just say that’s not what happened. I was fine for maybe a year doing exactly what they asked, but soon my 3.0 went to a 2.0 to then a 1.0 and even below that. Around that time, my life started changing rapidly, but there was one thing that stayed constant the whole time: Newspaper class. It wasn’t the class that I fell in love with, but the way it was so easy to make friends and communicate with everyone in the group. The more time I spent in that class the more fun I had, but then I started not writing or interviewing anyone on time. That continued for a solid year, and I managed to put out all my stories that year, but barely.

I continued failing, and although normal teachers would basically shun you and demand their assignments to be done or they were permanent zeros, Ms. Roskelley was more than willing to give me something else to work on that would save my grade in the class. It was then I became a graphics editor for the BGQ. I loved that for a while, but once again, I started slacking and failing. Still, Ms. Roskelley continued to give me unique, sometimes out of whack stories to write because she knew it’d keep me interested.

Meeting some of the best and closest friends I still have in my senior year, and my boyfriend I met through the BGQ was the best part of those years I struggled in. This year, I decided to maybe partake in the class, and everyone was baffled at the fact that I wanted to actually do my work, Roskelley included. Now I’m trying to show everyone (lower classmen especially) that it’s not about the end result of high school: it’s about all the struggles you went through to get here. Between the academic stress and finding yourself as a person, you’re pretty much struggling to keep your head above water for most of high school. I think that’s pretty universal for most of us.

So if I had one thing to say to freshmen or future high schoolers at Central it’d be this; Don’t worry about getting accepted into a college right away; live in the moment. Don’t waste your time stressing and panicking about school or late assignments because although it’s important, it’s not worth your time in the long run. In the end, all the work you’ve done will pay off but you’ll have a lot more fun doing it that way. And lastly, as a wise man once told me; make the most of your high school years, and keep the friends you have for as long as you can because as scary as it seems once your high school career ends, if you’re one of the lucky ones, you’ll have enough friends to count each one of your fingers once.

Good luck,

Trinity Whiteford

Dear future writers,

At the beginning of my senior year, I was introduced to a writing class known as the Black and Gold Quarterly. I joined the class because I was short an elective. I thought it was a normal English class, but I was mistaken. Walking into the room for the first time, I only saw a small group of students. I was welcomed by all of them, and we got right into talking about what was expected.

It is now almost the end of my senior year, and I have learned so many skills that have influenced me to become more open to what I want to do in the future. My favorite and most memorable part of this class is getting to know the talented writers who have shown me that hard work pays off. I have become more motivated and de termined with my work as a writer, no matter what the topic of my article is. Before joining this class, I was never confident to share my work with my friends because they didn’t take my writing seriously. Even in a normal English class, my writing was viewed like everyone else’s. Spending almost a whole year here, every student in BGQ has a unique way of writing, and each of them share something different.

Ms. Roskelley is not like any other teacher I have ever encountered. She has a kind personality and holds a lot of patience for her students. She has helped me the most throughout this new experience and believes I can do great things with more practice. The only thing that has ever made me stressed in this class is the deadlines for finaling. We have plenty of time to finish up our articles, so the stress feels more like suspense. The flexibility and support in this class is more than deserved, and I wish I could go back in time to discover this class much sooner.

Even though writing may not be my main job in the future, I will always write and use my sources to further my professionality. I hope to study journalism abroad, tying in culture with my writing, as well as using poetry to write lyrics for my personal hobby of singing. As I count down my final days of being a part of Central, I will hold on to everything I have learned and keep close contact with the people who have made my year constructive. Thank you, BGQ, for helping me become more comfortable in what I love to do. I will share what I have learned to others I meet on my way to success.

Lots of hugs, Trinity Stringer

Dear Central,

Hello! Being in this class for both the first and last time this year, I can’t really write about it that much, but I can say my experience in the class has been great. During the summer before my senior year, I never really thought about the school’s magazine, but it sparked my in terest. I love my fellow classmates, and I never thought I would en joy writing articles. Something I can say is that when writing, you shouldn’t slack off, and you should always be ahead of the schedule. I’m glad I could be in this class!

Sincerely,

Daniel Schmidt