By Mateo Perez ‘23

If someone told me at the beginning of this school year what was going to happen to me, I would not have believed them. I would have never guessed that my senior year was going to be filled with such opportunities, achievements, and setbacks.

One of the opportunities I had received was being a nominee for the Posse Scholarship, a full-tuition scholarship for undergraduate students. I was completely grateful and speechless when I found out that I had advanced as a semi-finalist.

Even though I didn’t receive the scholarship, it was still an amazing experience.

Another opportunity I had during my […]

By Mateo Perez ‘23

The time has finally come…the seniors’ last final exams.

I have studied hard for finals since freshman year. However, for some reason, studying for finals is starting to feel optional this semester. I mean…c’mon! It’s our last semester; why do seniors have to take finals?

Senior Nick Morrin said, “I’ve asked some of my teachers if we could just not take a final. Unfortunately, they all declined.”

It took a lot of effort to achieve straight A’s first semester but to keep that up for the second semester? That’s a lot to ask for. We all have senioritis! I have senioritis!

Senior […]

By Mateo Perez ‘23

Obviously, applying for colleges is such a stressful and difficult process. There’s no doubt about it. Seniors have to research schools they could possibly see themselves attending, complete long essays and questionnaires, all while keeping their social life and grades up.

Believe me, I was in the trenches at the beginning of the school year.

However, I think the part that doesn’t get much attention during this whole process is when admission decisions start to come out and students finally have to decide what school they are going to attend.

So many different factors come into play: one’s top choice, the […]

By Mateo Perez ‘23

I woke up on Jan. 28 with my heart racing and palms sweating. That was the day Early Action decisions came out for University of Miami, one of my top choices!

After I got out of bed, I immediately checked my portal to see if they posted an update on my application. Why I thought they would be posted at 7 in the morning, I have no idea. There was no update, so I continued to get ready for the day.

All throughout the day, I kept checking my email. During my second period, I saw “Congrats!” as the subject […]

By Mateo Perez ‘23

Dear Admissions Committee,

You want dedicated, creative, and hardworking students, and I am right here. You need me, and I need you. Why are we beating around the bush? When do I start?

In all seriousness, this college essay was a little difficult; I’m not going to lie. You know how people have writer’s block? Well, I had that and reader’s block. It was difficult to understand some prompts because they were lengthy and wordy! Believe me–it was a laundry list! I think I took a break every 5 minutes because I needed to process what I was reading, or […]

By Mateo Perez ‘23

Wait. We can take classes at McAuley? Yes, we can!

Mother McAuley allows Brother Rice students to take some classes at their school. Yet, many students from Rice aren’t aware of this opportunity. However, it isn’t just any class. McAuley allows students from Rice to take, some are fine arts classes like Theater Workshop I and II at their school.

Theater Workshop gives students the option to have a concentration in tech or acting. Those who declare a technical concentration focus on stage production and design and constructing set pieces.

McAuley student Shukurah Floyd, who chose a tech concentration, said, “I […]