As students walk through the media center, they notice the stress that lies within their peers’ faces. Nose deep into textbooks and cramming for quarter tests, students from every grade can relate to one thing: the pressure this time of year brings.

This school year has brought numerous changes upon WHS students. The change of the school start time, the renovation of the turf and the daily seven minute advisories have impacted all students.

“[Freshman year] is much harder,” freshmen Riley Leichliter said. “There’s a lot more tests to worry about.”

Tests are overwhelming to any student in school, and figuring out how to handle tests when entering the high school can be a freshman’s greatest obstacle.

“I thought it was stressful just because it was my first quarter in the high school,” freshman Carly Travis said. “So I wanted to do well, but then I got overwhelmed and I overthought everything.”

Adjusting to the high school environment after middle school is a challenge every high school student must experience, but being a sophomore entails unique challenges.

“There’s a lot more work and a lot more projects and tests,” sophomore Spencer Dines said. “I’m also in a handful of [new] classes that I didn’t think I would enjoy like chemistry, and ICE (Investing in a Creative Economy) [which] was a surprise because it is an elective, and I didn’t think I’d be getting any projects.”

Just like freshmen and sophomore year, junior year challenges students in a new way as it leads up to college.

“With junior year, I was told it would be such a hard year, but I didn’t realize it would start right away with all the work,” junior Talia Camiel said.

Many upperclassmen think junior year is the most stressful school year because it includes a lot of self-reflection and a great amount of focus to get the desired end result of college.

“I need to focus on having a good work ethic and working as hard as I can from the start and knowing everything matters,” Camiel said.

Following the intensity of junior year, seniors feel more at ease by the end of the first quarter.

“[Quarter one] was different than all the other years because as a senior, [it] means a lot more than any other grade,” senior Kyle Mabe said. “Colleges look heavily at your [first quarter] grades, which I think encourages most seniors to work hard.”

Seniors have spent the first few months of their final year wrapping up the college process, continuing to improve their grades and some even verbally committing to schools for sports.

“One thing that helped me adapt was managing my time better,” Mabe said. “Before [senior year] I wasn’t so good at it because I didn’t have a lot of work, but the beginning of senior year forced me to use my time wisely.”

Many students see the first quarter as a way to gain a better work ethic and strategies for the rest of the year. While some collaborate with their peers to achieve a successful quarter, others learn from prior experiences to make the remainder of the year better.

“My advice is to keep continuing to do the things [that] work [for you]. All the quarters are just as important as the other so just keep trying your best,” Camiel said.