Dear beloved readers and followers,
We are sad to say (no we are not) that our time with you is coming to a close. While this isn’t the last Beacon of the year, it is our last edition with our names on the masthead, as our successors will be taking over this May/June.
With that being said we are here to bring you what you have all been waiting for…the ultimate Rival Review. A full in-depth encapsulation of our very own, Jackson-Reed High School.
Our freshman year began online, rough to say the least. From sleeping on the Teams calls to asynchronous (no school) Wednesdays, we had a time. Fun fact, the two of us actually attended virtual class together in Francesca’s backyard with blankets, snacks and a small will to live. This was also when we discovered the social phenomenon that is Fort Reno. We’ll get more into that later.
Anyway, sophomore year is when things really got going. We got to finally experience the atrium firsthand, the chunky water at every fountain, and had the privilege of going through the metal detectors everyday. We noted the interesting dynamic between the senior sophomore couples, which we didn’t realize was actually a thing. Since we didn’t experience the typical freshmen ridicule, our initiation served as the AP Psych and AP HUG combo. We also went to our first and last football game.
Going into Junior year we said goodbye to Woodrow Wilson and hello to Jackson-Reed. School year 2022-23 was as expected: hard but more fun. Rival Reviews was born (shout out Riley Hawkinson for the idea) and off campus lunch was gained. Goodbye cafeteria, we never saw you again. Moving on.
The coveted senior year arrived with full force. All of a sudden cars were being drawn on, communal sunrises were being attended and powderpuff games were being won. The combination of being a Tiger and being a college applicant may surpass junior year APs in level of difficulty. It was a tough time. Quick note–senioritis is real guys. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.
With our time spent here we’ve become experts on the Jackson-Reed environment, so there’s a few things we’d like to touch on.
One acts is fun and has been a highlight of ours every year. Do it. After three different homecoming locations (field, atrium, gym) it is safe to say the default should always be the atrium. Befriend Rodgers, Boone, and Officer Stallings, their backs probably hurt from carrying the weight of JR. Don’t hang out in the Rose Garden. Do go sledding at Reno and hit it up on the 4th of July. Other than that it’s not the move. We know it’s a quintessential underclassmen experience, but we’ve seen too much. Support the basketball and volleyball teams, and the Tiger Hype Squad, their dynasty must live on. It wouldn’t be JR if there wasn’t an occasional fight here and there. We do not condone violence, we’re just saying maybe it’s part of the DC public school shaping experience.
While Jackson-Reed certainly has its faults, it’s the diverse student body that makes it worthwhile. We couldn’t imagine ourselves anywhere else.
XOXO
