Every year, it always happens. Not just at PCM, but at every school. Seniors stop caring about schoolwork and really start to slack off. It is known as “senioritis” and the only real cure is graduating. 12 years of schooling can really wear kids out and in the last semester with parts of their life planned out and they feel like adults trapped in a world of kids, it can impact academic performance. According to the Oxford dictionary, it is a “supposed affliction of students in their final year of high school or college, characterized by a decline in motivation or performance.” Teachers notice it and often add homework to force seniors to think about school. This is always met with animosity. It happens every year and this year is no different. In a recent survey sent to all PCM High School seniors, 95 percent said that they have senioritis. The whys varied, but most had to do with the fact that they felt as though they were above high school now.

Cate Humpal has senioritis because she cannot wait for college, the next phase of her life.

“The more I visit my college the more I go visit my college and get the feeling of getting off on my own and trying something new the more I want to get out of this school and start new,” Humpal said. 

Another reason listed why senioritis is running through PCM is because of burnout from a combination of school, sports, and future plans. Jillian Fairbanks is an example. 

“I have senioritis because it’s super hard to try and do school work, figure things out for college, graduation, prom and track. I just want to be done with homework,” Fairbanks said. 

One of the reasons why seniors can struggle with getting schoolwork done is because they don’t see the point in it, which really goes back to the idea of being above school. Paige Steenhoek feels this way. She talked about “busy work,” or pointless homework. 

“I am getting tired of busy work,” Steenhoek wrote. “I am also sick of being treated like a child and I do not have a lot of energy to spend a lot of time on my work.”

Another reason why senioritis is prominent at PCM is because of jobs, which aren’t a factor in student life in elementary or middle school. Many students are going to school for seven hours and then working for another five. That leaves little energy or time for homework or proper sleep. Haley VanDerKamp has fallen victim to this. 

“I have been wanting to be done with school since halfway through junior year because I wake up, go to school and go to work,” VanDerKamp said. “I do that every single day and I’m ready to be done.”

Everyone likes money to some degree and it can be a cause for senioritis. Dawson Hartz will not attend college next fall, but is going straight into the workforce. Right now, school is just an obstacle for him. 

“I’m ready to free up about seven hours of my day or at the very least dedicate it to making money,” Hartz said. 

In general, everyone seems to want to move on with their lives. Chloe Rasmusson said it best and has checked out of school. 

“I’m just over everything and I want to do my own thing,” Rassmusson said.