With second semester in full bloom, PV High Seniors are beginning to feel the itch to graduate. The concept of senioritis is one that every high school student knows of- anxiously awaiting no homework, being able to hang out with friends whenever, and enjoying the last couple months of being in high school. However, once one gets to their second semester of senior year, the question begins to loom in the mind of every senior: is senioritis a myth or fact?

Senioritis. Definition: a plague that strikes high school seniors as they prepare themselves for graduation. Example: Palos Verdes High School seniors are currently infected with senioritis as we have less than 100 days until graduation.
You’ve heard the myths. Second semester senior year is a breeze. Teachers don’t care, homework stops coming, and no one seems to be able to sit in their desks during this time. However, is this the truth? 98% of seniors are currently plagued with this disease according to a recent count I just made up considering my senioritis is at its peak. But seriously, second semester senior year seems to be all its cracked up to be… for the most part.
One downside to this time of year is the lovely Capstone project. By the end of the year, seniors are to have their whole projects completed and the finalists announced, all while planning graduation and the next steps they are to take in life. With the start of Capstone junior year now, this brings some lightening to the senior’s load; however, the burden is still present. Senior Greg Fester is not excited to complete his Capstone Project, and wishes some rash things to happen to it, just “wanting it all to be done with.” Fester is not alone in his opinion. Senior Caylie Landerville “loves having no homework, but this Capstone Project is stressing (her) out.” The amount of homework is decreasing, while Capstone works seems to only be getting more extensive.
The Capstone is one downside of this time of year; however, the burden of regular schoolwork on seniors is almost nonexistent. Senior Emily Nader’s biggest problem this semester is “having to get up to get (her) laptop charger before Netflix is interrupted, and that’s a lot of work.” Netflix plagues even the best of us at some point, and what better time to get hooked than second semester senior year? Bennett Tuleja can also vouch for this lack of work as well. He says, “I have like no homework. It’s great.” Once the “grueling” school day comes to an end, seniors are left with even less work to do at home.
Senior Annelise Kostrencich feels the wrath of the senioritis plague at all hours of the day. She says, “Coming to school is such a struggle. I think the only thing that keeps me coming is the fact that I’m bored sitting at home alone.” Annelise finds joy in seeing the faces of all her friends at school, but doing nothing all day is difficult for her. Fester furthers this thought by stating, “One can only watch so many movies in class.” Ways to pass the time are difficult for teachers to find, and movies are one option; however, not all classes have given up completely. AP courses are still in full swing until the tests in May. Frank Malone finds the workload in his AP Calculus class to be “the same as first semester”; however, Frank is willing to “work hard ‘af’ and ignore the haters who tell me otherwise.”
Milan Sharma applauds senior teachers for understanding the senioritis plague and for “being really supportive along the way.” This is really beneficial for Milan who says, “I didn’t believe senioritis to be an actual dilemma in our lives but once I hit second semester it has just been hard to function whether it be doing homework or getting up in the mornings.” So there you have it. The “struggle is real” as Kostrencich put it, and second semester senior year is a tough one for PV High Sea Kings. Senioritis. Conclusion: as school-crippling as the myth presents it.