I am incredibly lucky to say that I had a wonderful high school experience thanks to the my teachers who worked tirelessly to ensure all there students succeeded. In my four years there, I never saw them ever give up anyone, regardless of their prior education, age, or socioeconomic background. They taught us to believe that we were destined to be change makers; change the system we were brought up in, change our circumstances, change the world; and for that I am forever grateful.

In the end, it is the smallest acts of kindness we remember most and I was fortune to receive an abundance of support from the faculty and staff especially after the death of my father. They reassured me that I could take as much time as I needed and provided me with outlets to talk and express what I was going through.

The best teachers always challenge you to become to better student which mine definitely did. As much as we complained about the piles and piles of homework we had to do for the IB Program, they never eased up. They knew that in order to succeed in college we had to get used to heavy workloads; they knew that letting us take the easy way out wasn't going to help prepare us for the real world.

Finally, my teachers always made their students feel heard. They never made us feel like were immature or reckless or acted as if we knew less than them simply because of our age. The mutual sense of respect helped foster of bond that has lasted even after we graduated.