How HMHS Students Balance Academics, Work, and Social Lives
October 21, 2022
The students at Haddonfield Memorial High School are faced with other challenges besides extreme academic pressure. Here’s how they balance the many different aspects of their hectic lives.
HADDONFIELD, NJ– Haddonfield Memorial High School is known for its achievements in academic standards for students. The school has received countless awards for its academic excellence and continues to produce high-achieving students who go to impressive schools and gain important and long-lasting jobs.
HADDONFIELD, NJ– Haddonfield Memorial High School is known for its achievements in academic standards for students. The school has received countless awards for its academic excellence and continues to produce high-achieving students who go to impressive schools and gain important and long-lasting jobs.
For many young people, particularly students, it can be hard to maintain happiness and balance their schedules with many different activities such as sports, clubs, and jobs. When adding on the additional academic pressure increasingly felt by Haddonfield students, it can be challenging to thrive.
When junior Katie Mulvihill was asked how stressful her life can be at times, she replied: “I’m so busy. I’ve found that I have limited time to do my homework so I really have to prioritize assignments and make time for academics. It’s a lot, but I am able to balance everything. ” Mulvihill is one of many student-athletes at Haddonfield Memorial High School, who is also involved in multiple extracurricular activities including the 50/50 club, Interact Club, and March For Our Lives, while also being an active member of her church.
“With everything going on in my life I am often stressed and overwhelmed,” says Mulvihill.
Olivia Bailey is also a junior at Haddonfield Memorial High School, involved with many clubs and activities. On top of her academic and extracurricular activities, she is currently employed at the British Chip Shop, a British restaurant in downtown Haddonfield, where she works as often as possible on school days and full-time on the weekends.
Bailey agreed that “I think sometimes work is really hard to manage with school and I think personally I have trouble setting boundaries for when I should and shouldn’t work.” She also discussed the perceived increase in pressure specifically placed on students that attend Haddonfield High School.
“I think people are really competitive here, which can sometimes make people feel nervous and put extra pressure on them to balance it all. I think people feel like they have to be on their A-game.”
With hectic lives, students at Haddonfield Memorial High School are forced to find ways to cope with their extreme stress.
“I feel like soccer, in elementary school, was always an outlet for my stress and now that has continued on through crew,” expresses Mulvihill.
HMHS has an excellent art program and many of its students turn to creativity and arts to relieve their stress.
“When I’m stressed, I like to create and consume art,” says Bailey.
The pressure facing Haddonfield Memorial High School students is unmatched. Even without academics, students’ lives are constantly consumed by sports, clubs, and jobs. This level of stress is often difficult for young students to cope with, but HMHS works to relieve pressure from their students through their social-emotional learning program.
Both Mulvihill and Bailey agreed that they are “often stressed about school,” and that “HMHS can do a lot of things to help its stressed out students.”
