In 2015, I officially graduated as a product of Gwinnett County public schools. Although it is only the second most populated county, it is, in fact, the largest school system. This past year, over 178,000 students walked through the doors of the 139 schools. On the outside, GCPS looks like a wonderful education system that produces intelligent young adults. While this is true to an extent, there are things that only those who experienced this education system will understand.
1. Your student number is permanently etched onto your brain.
I'm sure other schools may have this system as well. It's just that here in Gwinnett, this number is our sole identity. You can't even eat if you can't punch it into the number pad. The older generation could probably type theirs in under five seconds.
2. Tests.
Need I say more? Whole days were devoted to testing. We pretty much take as many standardized tests as possible. CRCT, EOCT, COGAT and more. Some have come and gone but Gwinnett will always make sure that you are tested in every way possible on every subject possible. Hey college, we're so prepared because we know how to fake smart on a standardized test.
3. You remember that one time we got #closegwinnett trending on Twitter.
Y'all, people in New York were roasting us for trending because of a few inches of snow. It was kind of awesome.
4. When other schools begin closing you know not to get too excited.
Gwinnett is not afraid to stand out. We will not miss school.
5. You know that even if school gets closed, you will have to make it up.
Yes, it is true, if we have been declared in a state of emergency, we are not required to make up school. Gwinnett, however, will always go above and beyond and we will make up those days no matter the cost. Does anyone remember that year we had to stay 30 minutes late every day for two months? Yeah, that was bad.
6. You didn't do homework because you were sure that Gwinnett would finally come in clutch.
You probably waited until 4 a.m. thinking that J. Alvin Wilbanks was just holding out on us to make us sweat it out. Nope. It's not happening.
7. The dreaded day when our beloved vending machines got Michelle Obamafied.
Goodbye beloved fruit snacks and hot fudge Pop-Tart. Hello single whole wheat Pop-Tart with no frosting. Thankfully, Archer High School came in with a non-school hour vending machine that filled the void in my heart.
8. Driving to games and events at other schools could take up to an hour, or longer.
Gwinnett is huge. Even if you're staying in the county to play a game, that's not to say it still won't take you an hour to get there.
9. Sports, especially football, are taken very seriously
Schools recruit as if they're a Division 1 university. It gets serious. I'm sure other places get serious, too, but I'm pretty sure nothing compares to Gwinnett.
10. Classes not required by the state of Georgia were still required by Gwinnett
It's a shame when people transfer from other states and counties as juniors and seniors only to find out that in Gwinnett they're a freshman or sophomore. Come on Gwinnett, get it together
11. If there's a new teaching technique, we'll try it.
My personal favorite was when the retake policies were implemented. It probably hindered my studying abilities in the long run but my grades sure were good.
12. At the end of the day, we're just thankful for our diploma.
It kind of seems like a let down when we've worked our tails off for 13 years to hear our name and spend 30 seconds walking across a stage or field to get a piece of paper. You probably don't even recognize half of the names you hear, anyways. If you haven't gotten to this point yet, hold on -- it gets better. I promise.
In all honesty, I could spend days complaining about the Gwinnett County school system. However, they did provide me with my best friend, some amazing teachers (along with some not so great ones) and opportunities to find out what I loved to do. So thank you Gwinnett County Public Schools, kind of.
