With the second quarter drawing to a close, Yorktown has been overwhelmed with activity. Both teachers and students have been struggling to include and complete everything that was previously planned.
The National Honor Society members are also hurrying to complete their required eight hours of individual service and eight hours of group service. If the juniors and seniors do not meet this requirement, they risk dismissal from the club.
Continued with this rush, college deadlines are quickly upcoming. While many have passed, seniors struggle to complete all necessary forms and essays by the required dates. These deadlines have been the cause of the loss of sleep and much stress across the senior class.
Yorktown recently placed third in the Washington Post Challenge Index of 148 Washington-area public high schools. The index was calculated through dividing the total number of Advanced Placement exams taken by the number of graduating seniors. The article also stated that any school with a rating of 1.000 or higher placed in the top 5 percent of all US high schools in encouraging students to take AP/IB exams. Yorktown (2.951), Washington-Lee (2.070), and Wakefield (1.247) all placed higher than the 1.000 rating.
During the week of Jan. 7, students participated in the Classics Festival. Both English and drama classes performed classic plays, such as Hamlet, Julius Caesar, and The Canterbury Tales, for other classes during the school day. Students may also participate in poster and monologue contests.
Art students also succeeded in the county Scholastics competition, in which pieces are judged and selected to go on to the national level in New York. Out of the 50 possible gold keys (or first places), 25 went to Yorktown.
Recently, the Arlington County School Board has decided that all AP English 12 students will be required to take both the literature and language AP exams in May. This change has caused some teachers to alter their curriculum in order to incorporate the new exam.
As the quarter ends, students can celebrate with the winter dance on Jan. 26. The administration decided the dance theme is fiesta. Finally, students can relax and enjoy a three-day weekend while dancing the night away with friends.