There is no surprise that this year is different and many are struggling with the changes we are forced to make. Students participating in the hybrid program here at LP are bound to deal with an odd workload due to only meeting in class once a week. 

Many students are beginning to struggle with balancing academics and social life. This can lead to students falling behind or choosing not to participate. Those who are also participating in extracurricular activities feel overwhelmed and pressured to be successful.

Rachel O’Connell 10, is a very active student here at LP. O’Connell plays the Tenor Saxophone, runs for Cross Country, and participates on the Speech and Debate team. O’Connell has been a part of Band and Speech since sixth grade and started Cross Country during seventh grade. 

“Well, Cross Country just finished, but practice was an hour and a half everyday except Sunday,” O’Connell said, “Speech is two hours one day a week and Saxophone is 30 mins usually every other day.”

O’Connell spends most of her time doing extracurriculars or working on homework. 

“Homework, I spend a lot of time on it. Probably a few hours a day, probably around three but I do most of my homework on the weekends,” O’Connell said. 

Having so much on her plate O’Connell tends to feel overwhelmed with the workload given to her.

“I get stressed a lot. A lot of the time I just shut down, and then I don’t get anything done,” O’Connell said, “School keeps me up a lot.” 

However, O’Connell is not the only one feeling this way. Michael Fiocchi 10, plays Baseball at Colorado Baseball Association (CBA) and Soccer here at LP. Fiocchi has been playing Baseball since he was little and Soccer since last year. Fiocchi tends to feel stressed about tests and feels pressured to do well. 

“I kind of feel pressured to do well in school and sports for my Dad,” Fiocchi said.

Natalie Hong 10 also feels overwhelmed with her workload because she is a two-year Student Council member and also trains in Taekwondo at her father’s studio since she was two. She also has been helping him out to keep the small business afloat during the  COVID-19 epidemic. 

“A lot of businesses have either lowered in customers or are just completely gone because of COVID. It’s been pretty hard since my dad owns one of those businesses. I’ve been trying to help him advertise and teach, so it’s kind of hard,” Hong said.

Hong feels stressed about helping with her father’s business and keeping her grades up. She typically spends around three to four hours a day on homework while trying to train for Taekwondo competitions.

“Oh yeah, I definitely feel stressed. I actually have a national level competition coming up and I’m pretty stressed about that,” Hong said.

Many students are having a hard time balancing not only school work but their extracurriculars and the added stress of COVID-19.

“I feel pressured to be this perfect type of person that has a side job while also trying to keep up with my work,” Hong said.