Why drive?

My name is Madeline McLeod. I live in Cuero, TX and commute thirty minutes each morning to attend St. Joseph High School in Victoria. I am currently a Starlighter, Student Ambassador, and highly motivated student. Though sometimes it is difficult to be excited about getting up at 5:30am just to go to school, STJ is worth it!

My favorite part of the school day is my Pre-AP English class. Like most honors classes, it requires time management, but the knowledge and skills I will develop through the completion of an AP program are definitely worth the effort.

Starlighters (STJ’s dance team) also take up a lot of my time but like everything else I do it is worth it. Our team practices all summer long in order to be ready for football season, but we do a lot more with Starlighters besides performing at football games. We have intense practices for our competition season in March.

Competition season is my favorite part of the year because I can explore other types of dance. At nationals this March we won first in every team dance from pom to lyrical and brought home the title National Grand Champion. It was a huge success for the team and made all the hard work worthwhile. We traveled to New York City over Easter to take classes at the famous Broadway Dance Center.

I thoroughly enjoy the opportunity to be involved in so much. The open environment at STJ has allowed me to be a Starlighter, Student Ambassador, take honors and Pre-AP courses and still have time to enjoy my family and friends. It is only my sophomore year, but I feel like I have been a part of the STJ family my entire life. I look forward to my future and am ready to face any challenge with a smile.
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Kelly Carmona

I am a currently a sophomore, taking honors classes that consume time and challenge the mind. I spend my time doing homework, cheerleading and traveling; I do not live in Victoria but about thirty miles out of town on the Cuero highway. A question that is often asked of me is, “why are you going to a school thirty minutes out of town?” Personally, I ask, “why not?”

You see, living out of town takes a family; getting you from place to place, being there for you when you’re working late, and continuously feeding you positive energy.

I am fortunate that I have two families; my family at home and my family at St. Joseph’s. Through advertisements on billboards and commercials you hear of St. Joes’ Journey; however, they do not tell you that during this journey you will form a family. In the last two years I have developed a love for the school I attend, not just because of the enriching courses or the safe atmosphere, but because “home is where the heart is.” I leave my home everyday to travel to a school that I also call home. At St. Joseph, not only do you begin a journey but you develop a relationship with peers as you learn together and form a family that lasts a lifetime.

Welcome to the newest chapter in the Flyer Expressions Blog. We will be featuring STJ student bloggers who will give you the inside scoop on life at St. Joseph High School.

This week, two seniors will share their experiences of life at STJ.

Hilary is a senior who participates in choir, band and cheerleading. She will attend St. Mary’s University in San Antonio in the fall and hopes to try out for the cheerleading team there.

Lately, I have been preparing for our choir concert/sight reading and state solo competition in Houston. It is hard work but now that it is my senior year, it’s my last chance to prove myself. I am also in the midst of preparing for the band concert/sight reading contest which is on April 9th at Victoria College. Then, it is band solo contest in Dallas. With this and graduation around the corner, there is no time to sit still. I feel like I am on the highway and the cars next to me look like they are sitting still. That’s how fast I feel this year is passing by!

Even with band and choir consuming my time, academics still come first. My teachers have told us about “senioritis,” but I feel like I am working harder than ever right now.

Isabel is also a senior who participates in the National Honor Society, the Student Ambassador Program and the STJ Theatre Arts Department. Isabel is currently weighing her different collegiate options as you will see in her blog…

I realize that only 8 weeks remain until graduation. Even sooner though, all college selections must be final by May 1st. All admissions are still dependent on a final high school transcript; this serves as a slight remedy for my latest case of “senioritis."

I began this year utterly undecided about where I wanted to go, but I have finally narrowed my choice between two universities: Southwestern near Austin or Denver, Colorado. With such an important decision to be made so soon, school sometimes feels like an afterthought. Yet, these being my last few weeks at St. Joe, I must remember to appreciate and cherish everything as it stands now. We take for granted sometimes the close bonds at our school and with the excitement of choosing colleges we have the bittersweet realization that we will never walk the halls as a student here again.

Check back next week for two different students’ perspective on life at St. Joseph High School.