In a school year filled with seemingly unprecedented challenges, this spring Grossmont HS sports teams were able to take the field and the court and achieved amazing successes, despite the abbreviated seasons and the social distancing and mask mandates. Some athletes were even able to play two sports at once, thanks to supportive coaching staffs.
This year 410 seniors in the Class of 2021 became part of an amazing group: 38,000 Foothiller graduates. For 100 years, Grossmont High School’s students and staff have taken great pride in the traditions surrounding graduation. The challenge this year was to honor those traditions within COVID-19 protocols; amazingly, in person Senior Awards, Prom, and Graduation events occurred on campus, thanks to the efforts of GHS’s dedicated staff and students.
The weekend before graduation, on June 5th, seniors attended the prom, a prom like no other. Held on the east side of the iconic “Castle”, it was an amazing event. Something new was added this year with the addition of a “2021 Royalty Court”. The court was selected online by the senior class: Sunshine Astourian, Jessica Chammas, Kimmy Bond, Grace Hafner, Karsen Carroll, Harrison Cox, Caden McCulloch, Blake Richardson, Robert Tucker, Lily Ehrenfeld. From this court, it was narrowed to two by attendees of the prom, who selected Lily Ehrenfeld and Kimmy Bond as 2021 Royalty.
The following Tuesday, June 8th, graduation was held on campus.
In March 2020, the lives of Grossmont’s 100th graduating class, the Class of 2021, were dramatically changed. In the past 14 months, Foothillers have faced the challenge of distance learning as well as the challenge of transitioning from a semester to a quarter system and adjusting to the varying in person and distance learning schedules. At the end of 2020, students could choose to return to class one day a week, in 2021 two days, and now four days a week. At the same time, some students have continued to learn from home while the teachers teach simultaneously to those at home and those in class.
These challenges have especially tested this year’s senior class as they face a year without the traditional senior experiences. We recently asked them to share their thoughts with us.
During the past 14 months, what has been the most difficult thing
about the COVID shut down for you?
The 1970s student newspaper, Foothill Echoes, captures the distinctive voices of students discovering themselves and their values, and at the same time, enjoying the high school experience.
The May 14, 1971 article, “Want to Get High This Summer?” by Christine Albert begins, “Have a thing about dew points, wing tip vertices, even dry adiabatic lapse raters? Or maybe you’d be satisfied in just knowing what they mean….In any case, if you’re interested in aviation, there will be an excellent opportunity to delve into basic aeronautics via a course offered at Grossmont High School this summer.
According to the instructor, Mr. Lloyd La Plant, the course will be the equivalent of a ground school program for private pilots. The 4 hour 7 week course will provide 10 units of science credits, and students who conscientiously complete the curriculum usually are able to pass the FAA 4 hour written examination required of all licensed pilots.
Every decade has its own voice, but the 1960s decade has become iconic in multiple ways; reading the student newspaper the Foothill Echoes reminds us of the universal experiences of students finding their voices.
In the March 18, 1960 newspaper, ASB presidential candidates shared their views. John Reutter begins metaphorically, “The stage is set, and the lights are out. The curtain flies open and spots flash on. Action starts. Grossmont, you are on stage. The spotlight of the future is focused on you. This is no ordinary play taking place, but a real live drama. You are the writer, the actor, and the director. The audience is the future, your future and my future.”
He ends, “Grossmont … is no ordinary school…The reason Grossmont is no ordinary school does not lie in the gray, ivy-covered walls, but in you the student….Grossmont is no good, unless you, the student, learn well and apply what you have learned. In the past, Grossmonters have made the most of the opportunities offered here. Now, the opportunities are yours. Take them.”
