West High Graduating student’s ambitions journey beyond the classroom. As the final bell rings at West High, five remarkable individuals stand on the brink of the future. Each has a collectively bright future with different pathways and many potential accomplishments.
Faith Curtis plans to attend Webster University, majoring in Musical Theatre and minoring in language. Webster University is one of the top theater schools in the state and she believes they have exactly what she wants. She’s also interested in the music industry and acting. Curtis’s biggest takeaway from high school and theater is “You’re replaceable in the music industry.” Highschool is comforting and the outside world sort of hits you. Curtis is most proud of the poems that she writes and stepped out of her comfort zone when she did writers’ week and read her poem out to everyone. She wants to continue her path of music and arts. She knows it will be a difficult journey but wants to push on.
Autumn Neraio plans on going to college and majoring in computer science. She had a spark for this industry because the salary is very good. She is planning on going to Maryville University or Saint Louis University. Something Nerio struggles with is Motivation, procrastination, the adrenaline to do things last minute, and plans to have better discipline and put work in because it won’t go to college. Besides her academics, she describes herself as imaginative and creative. Nerio is most excited about having a secured job after high school. A writing blog writes short stories, Assesspoint, and jobs from Edward Jones. Several Romance stories and physiological stories. Her biggest takeaway from high school is “ I shouldn’t care what other people think, just do what I want to do. She had the thought of taking a gap year and getting the chance to figure things out. It sounded appealing but remember Titus, a Math teacher at West High, said “ People when they take a year off they are so used to not taking tests and assignments it will be so much harder.
Aiyden Jay plans to become a professional musician and earn a degree in music performance at UMSL,
participating in Band, Choir, or Orchestra. This year, Jay is auditioning for the St. Louis Youth Symphony Orchestra with the trombone and tuba. Jay’s ultimate dream is to join the low brass section of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra and to compose and record their music with all instruments, striving to make music a part of their everyday job. Jay had successful auditions for his honor district and all state bands this year, making high chair placements in each. I’ve had the most exponential growth in my musicianship ever over this last year. One challenge Jay has come across while accomplishing his goals
was the sheer amount of time management that was required to keep his extensive music talents going. Jay says “ Being almost an entirely self-taught musician I’ve learned to poeticize my next practices and tasks.” This has taught Jay to have a never-ending drive to become better every day. An accomplishment that Jay is most proud of is his auditions for the honor district and all-state bands this year. Jay has learned so many new instruments over my years of high school. He intends to take the pro level. Jay is proud to say he has helped many other musicians at Hazelwood West with their music and instrument playing. Jay said, “ I’ve made an impact on many other musicians my age and have inspired the younger generation of band, choir, and orchestra students at multiple high schools.”
Oluwamitobi Ogunbanke Plans to go to a 4-year college and become a doctor. She’s declared he
r major in human biology and or neuroscience. What led Ogunbanke to this is that she likes the human body and has always been interested in her since she was little. Also, her younger brother had a seizure when he was younger, and wanted to learn more about seizures how they happen, and how the child and adult brains work. She is thinking of going into Peds and working with kids. Key club president, Being a class officer secretary. Some challenges Ogunbanke said were coming from Nigeria coming from a country coming from and education becoming a main focus and highly prioritized made her care so much more about education.
Inwinosa Egharevba Plans on majoring in computer science because she likes anything tech-related makes lots of money and can work at home. Her dad was an electrical engineer and wanted a job like that but wanted a stagnant job that couldn’t be seized in the future. Some challenges that have led up to this point is when she moved to a different country things were different and coming from Nigeria it was more competitive there but when coming to the United States it was more laid back which made Egharevba tend to become easier. Some accomplishments she has are NHS, Best of West and she recently won an award for women in tech. Egharevba is most excited about leaving and getting to explore and experience things outside of St. Louis.
Kayden Ramsay-Alexander wants to graduate high school and become an engineer. Ramsay-Alexander has always been interested in science and has had a passion for it, along with his analytical thinking skills, since he was a child. He has always thrived in this field, which is why he chose to stay true to it. His dream job was to become an astronaut, but since he lacked representation in that area, he turned his focus towards engineering. Ramsay-Alexander is most excited about experiencing new things, being independent, and seeing how he thrives in those situations. With his 18 years of life and the guidance he’s had, he approaches new experiences with confidence in his abilities. Ramsay-Alexander would describe himself as someone who values relationships and strives to make a positive impact on the people around him. He seeks out creative and intuitive individuals who share the same goals. Being surrounded by like-minded people allows him to foster connections and inspire others. He is also passionate about helping those who are less fortunate and expanding their knowledge of food, learning, and culture. His biggest challenge has been finding representation throughout his life. As an African American male who was labeled as gifted as a child, he often felt hindered by the lack of people who looked like him and shared his mindset. This led to a sense of complacency and a lack of relatability. However, Ramsay-Alexander is most proud of his resilience and ability to persevere through mental and physical struggles. He always keeps the end goal in mind, taking small and big steps towards it. His advice to himself and others is, “Embrace the things that make you nervous and scared and do them with passion, even if you’re scared. Trust in yourself and your abilities.”
