“The beginning of the end”: Class of 2020 attends their first senior breakfast (and event) of the year

Campus News January 18, 2020 Admin

BY EMMA HUERTA At around 8 a.m. on January 16, the CCHS cafeteria was full of excited murmurs as the entire senior class shuffled...

BY EMMA HUERTA

At around 8 a.m. on January 16, the CCHS cafeteria was full of excited murmurs as the entire senior class shuffled in. Vibrant decorations, including “2020” shaped balloons and table adornments, lit up the space.

This was the senior breakfast, the first of multiple activities that countless CCHS seniors have partaken in as they celebrate the long-awaited arrival of graduation. For many, this event shows just how quickly the big date is approaching.

“I’ve been really excited for my senior year for a really long time now, and the fact that we are at senior breakfast is just insane,” senior Amanda Arocha said. “I’m so excited to be here and it’s basically the end of something that is big and has been happening for so long.”

During the event, the students were guided through a number of activities all celebrating and commemorating their high school journey. First, they ate breakfast, which included bagels from JP’s Bagels, among friends. Afterward, they were escorted to the gym to take the iconic senior panoramic photo and concluded with the announcement of senior superlative winners. The event began during first period and lasted until the end of third period.

“I’ve been really excited for my senior year for a really long time now, and the fact that we are at senior breakfast is just insane.”

“The panoramic [is important] because it’s a whole portrait of our senior class so everyone is together,” Class of 2020 Corresponding Secretary Madison Piper said. “[Senior breakfast] brings everyone together and everyone can socialize before they have to leave and go to college … It’s good for school spirit and [to] have memories for when you go away.”

This year, the yearbook staff was in charge of conducting superlative voting, as well as taking pictures at the breakfast. Students were able to nominate each other for the 20 superlative categories on Quia with the top three nominees going on the ballot for final voting via Tallyspace.

“This year, I wanted to have the students nominate [superlatives] because as much as the teachers see the kids, they don’t really know them outside of school,” The Round Up Editor-in-Chief Summer Testa said. “I had to physically type in all 547 senior class names into the system so that everyone could vote. I was really willing to do it because I care for them so much. It’s already sad that they’re graduating, but I wanted to make this great for them.”

Along with these essential senior activities, the 2020 breakfast also featured announcements regarding upcoming events, such as this year’s prom theme (“Be Our Guest,” inspired by the Disney movie “Beauty and the Beast”) and the senior song (“Good Life” by OneRepublic).

“It’s nice to come together as seniors. Class of 2020 represent,” senior Ben Farquhar said. “We [should] expand it because senior year is like this big celebration. It’s the culmination of a lot of things and a lot of people’s lives … Let’s get these traditions going, Cooper!”

“It’s nice to come together as seniors. Class of 2020 represent.”

As with any major CCHS event, the Class of 2020’s first senior breakfast took a lot of time and effort from some of the most active organizations and faculty on campus. Main contributors included the Student Government Association (SGA), Class of 2020 sponsors Claudia Jones and Melissa Cabrera and Exceptional Student Education (ESE) teacher Nancy Garcia for fundraising and organization.

“The officers really spearhead most of the planning and organizing. First, they come to us [the class sponsors]—mostly Jones—for help and guidance,” Cabrera said. “They definitely take on most of it, and Ms. Garcia was just phenomenal with the decorating. Everyone just came together to really put that stuff together and make sure it was nice and done.”

This first gathering for the outgoing students marks the beginning of their final high school activities, with events like Variety Show and Grad Bash quickly approaching.

“This is the beginning of the downward rollercoaster ride,” Jones said. “You get to the climax on a plot diagram and now we’re going down to the resolution and conclusion. This is the beginning of the end. This is congratulating everyone and it’s just one of the first activities that we have as a class.”