As the year comes to an end our seniors are recalling the plethora of memories that have filled their high school years. Though the purpose of high school is for academics the moments that are made along the way are times that’ll be remembered throughout life. I interviewed teachers asking them to recall memories from the senior class. Many cherish the fun moments that this class has created as they’ve watched them grow up and become adults ready for the real world.

 BCHS science teacher, Mr. Slusher had some interesting memories from the senior class. During the year that he had the class of 2023, they were in virtual learning, due to the global pandemic at the time. One memory was of Joel Patrick and how he stood out on the screen. He stated, “What I remember the most  is during Google meets, Joel spinning in his chair, as he’s answering questions and ignoring me at times also.” He also recalled Mason Livingood’s unique accessorizing skills as he stated, “ I also remember Mason Livingood always having some strange sunglasses on. I don’t know why he had sunglasses on, he was in his house. He also changed locations a lot, but he always had sunglasses on, big round ones.” Mr. Slusher appreciates the unique and fun personalities that the seniors have, and they certainly have entertained him even through a screen. He acknowledges their resilience throughout the pandemic “That’s what I love about this class; they had to survive through the pandemic doing whatever they needed to do.” 

BCHS English teacher Mrs. Carter provided a heartfelt description of the 2023 senior class. She describes the class as “good-hearted and hardworking” as she recalls the difficult year when they had to transition into virtual learning during their freshman and sophomore years. “I was really lucky, I had a lot of them as sophomores when we were virtual. That’s how I met a lot of these kids, just through Zoom. Then we started coming back to school, some of them came back to the classroom, so that was really cool to finally see their faces even though we were still in masks. And then I had several of them their junior year too, and again we started out in masks. So I got to know them virtually and then little by little. I still have some of them this year as seniors in young adult literature class and they’re just a sweet group of kids, good-hearted hard workers. I will always have fond memories of this class.” She appreciates being able to have gotten to know some of the seniors throughout the years, despite challenges from the years of quarantine and masks. Mrs. Carter also is beaming with pride as she can say she got to help reward seniors for their accomplishments. “Recently I was able to induct several of the seniors into the National Honors Society. So that was a really nice experience; being able to honor those kids who I know have worked hard through some tough years of high school, so good luck to the senior class.” 

BCHS History teacher Mr. Buttice also had some kind words to say about the senior class and the struggles that they have overcome. Much like most teachers, getting to know the senior class began with virtual learning, “ I had them all virtually when they were sophomores, and I had gotten to know them through virtual learning. Then when they came back to school last year I would see them in the hallway and never saw their faces and they would say hi to me all the time. And I would say “Who are you” because I didn’t know who they were and I finally got to know who they were in person as well and it was pretty cool because they saw me every day online and I never saw their faces. But they were a pretty special group and I was still able to build relationships with them even though they were virtual, which was really neat.” He cherishes the bonds that he was able to make with students and has enjoyed watching them grow as students. There is a group in particular that he has gotten to know more and will miss when they graduate later this year, “Specifically the kids that I have had in APUSH last year, who are seniors now, and the ones who had taken AP World the year before. They had struggled in AP World a lot virtually, and then when they got to APUSH they kept working and became really good history students. I was really proud of them for having done that because a lot of them improved so much when we got back in person. Those kids that took APUSH I’m really close with, they’re a really special group” He also acknowledges the hardships that the senior class had to endure throughout their high school years and appreciates all of their hard work. “All the kids that are seniors have worked really hard. They endured a lot, they left freshman year during Covid, they were virtually their sophomore year, they had to adjust coming back last year and now they’re seniors. They’ve had a really unorthodox high school education, they’re a special group.” 

BCHS History teacher Mr. Wright appreciates how the 2023 senior class was able to bring back “normalcy” to Bourbon County High School. “The senior class of 2023 is very special in general because they brought back a sense of normalcy in a post-Covid world and I will always appreciate all of them for that.” He also has been able to get to know some of the seniors and will continue to appreciate the times he’s had with them, “I also will always appreciate and remember fondly conversations with Ada, Abby, and Clay in second period.” 

The teachers at Bourbon County High School appreciate and care for the class of 2023. As they have overcome challenges that came along with virtual learning and Covid. They also appreciate the wonderful memories and bonds that have been created throughout the years and will cherish them for many years to come.