Name Jacob Thacker
Graduating From: San Luis Obispo High School Degree: HS Diploma
Future Plans: UC San Diego, Eleanor Roosevelt College (“Developing a Global Citizen”) for Business and possibly International Business
How I was affected: I was in econ class and rumours were going around school, so we were talking about it the whole class period. Some people thought there was no way they would shut down the school because it had never happened before, others thought they might in about a month and others said no, today’s the day! So we were all talking about it. I have work experience for the last part of the day, so after I got home from that on that day we got the email that said you won’t be returning to school for a month. The first week we had no homework because they were trying to figure out how to do school with us at home. All my friends were still hanging out with each other (I was only seeing my girlfriend), and they were treating it like another spring break.
Some of the emotions I experienced when this all started: surprise and in the beginning everyone was excited and happy about not having to go to school. Now, it’s like a big let down. Like we climbed a mountain but didn’t get all the way to the top. The feeling like it was right there and then it was taken away. Deprived.
Positive things: My girlfriend and I dressed up and had our own dinner, like our own little prom and celebration and I’ve been able to surf with the flexible school schedule.
Something that Surprised me: We (our graduating class) has had a unique experience that nobody else (hopefully) will have. We didn’t have certain things but we got to experience some things that I think will shape who we are and that we’ll take with us the rest of our lives.
Something that stood out during this experience: At first the impact on it being our senior year didn’t really hit because we were supposed to only be out of school for a month, but when that got extended and we started passing by all of the dates where senior activities were supposed to happen, it was sad; it really sunk in that this was the best time of the senior year when all our hard work pays off and we have fun… and we were stuck at home doing busy work on the computer.
Something Unexpected that I experienced: Someone started this thing called Senior Gift Basket Exchange where a family can adopt a senior, so a family in Templeton adopted me and we met at a gas station and talked for a few minutes and they gave me some candy and little gifts. Then there was a televised graduation (link to YouTube video below) for the Class of 2020 with President Obama giving a speech and hosted by LeBron James and Kevin Hart, so I see that the community is really trying to make this special for us under the restrictions that we have. It makes us feel like people care - they’re looking out for us and making an effort.
https://youtu.be/6uXkfnn-eg4 #GraduateTogether
What was it like staying at home: I wasn’t used to this way of doing school. In class I ask a lot of questions. I’m an external processor and like to talk about things and my class didn’t do live zoom meetings, so I’d type a question and get an answer a couple hours later. I didn’t learn as well. Explanations in person work for me. This way of doing school felt like I was being given busywork but not learning as effectively. It was not fun. I much more enjoy discussing things and learning that way.
New things I did while staying at home: I’ve been Face-Timing (https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204380) with friends to work on assignments and then we’ll end up just hanging out on there for an hour. I’ve also gone fishing with a friend and just kept 6 feet apart. If you put in some effort you can make it work.
I notice: Some people are just ignoring the rules and partying and seeing their friends and doing whatever they want. That’s not ideal, but I don’t know what you can do.
One difficult thing was: Settling on my future plans. I applied to Oregon, Cal Poly, and UCSD. I got into Oregon, bought a t-shirt and started making plans. I got accepted but declined Cal Poly and was wait-listed for UCSD. Then I figured out going to Oregon was going to be too expensive, so I contacted Cal Poly and asked to get back in. They said yes, so I un-accepted Oregon and told everyone I was going to Cal Poly. Then I got off the wait-list at UCSD so I declined Cal Poly again and now I’m going to UCSD. People think you just pick where you want to go and go there, but it was not like that for me. Now we don’t know for sure if they’ll be doing online classes and I don’t do well with online classes, but the schools aren’t letting you defer. You can reapply next year, but there’s a chance you won’t get in. Argh.
Lori’s Summary: Jake and Grant, as twins, seem to have an additional appreciation for their personal uniqueness as individuals and both seem self-confident, self-aware and comfortable in who they are and able to articulate it because of their relationship with their twin.
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