On May 23, Homewood High School seniors will turn their tassels and graduate as the class of 2016.
College and Career Counselor Elaine Haskins said she has enjoyed watching this year’s senior class develop and grow throughout its high school career. Haskins served as the school’s ninth-grade counselor before taking the college and career position, and she has been able to look back on conversations she had with students as they were just starting high school.
“It’s really been fun to get to see the students that I knew when they were ninth-graders and thinking back to conversations I had with students when they were in ninth grade and going into 10th grade,” Haskins said. “I can just see how their taking on another challenge really paid off. It’s neat to see those seeds planted.”
The class of 2016 has been a steady and academically impressive group, she said. While students are not competitive against each other, Haskins said, they consistently look for ways to improve themselves. She said her advice to the graduating seniors would be to continue to work hard and do what they love.
“I would say this class in particular has really been selective in what they’ve chosen to do with their time in school and out of school, and I would say just to keep enjoying the challenge of what you’re taking on and to keep doing things for yourself that you enjoy doing,” she said.
The Homewood Star sat down with a few members of the class of 2016 to discuss their high school experience and their plans for the future.
Name: Emily Kachelhofer
Activities: Senior class president, show choir
College plans: Pre-med at Birmingham Southern College or Wofford University
Even though Emily Kachelhofer is graduating Homewood High School this month, she said her ties to the school will not end. Her younger sisters will be freshmen next year, and she looks forward to hearing about their experience.
“I think with a last name like Kachelhofer, they’ll be well-known,” she said. “All the teachers know me, and say ‘Oh you’re Emily’s sister,’ so it’s kind of nice there’s a legacy that I’m leaving behind.”
As senior class president, Kachelhofer will make a speech at her class’s graduation ceremony in May. Although she will not be able to mention specific people or teachers, she said she plans to offer thanks to anyone who has influenced the students at Homewood.
“I just want to say a thank you to all of the people who have helped us make it this far,” she said. “Like our principal, he was new my freshman year, so this is his class, his first class graduating, and I think it’d be nice to thank him and all of our teachers for putting up with us.”
Her teachers’ passion for what they teach has helped Kachelhofer prepare for college in the classroom, and she said her fellow students have helped prepare her for outside the classroom.
HHS also offers a close-knit community, Kachelhofer said, and that is something she looked for in colleges. She is debating between attending Birmingham Southern College or Wofford University in the fall. After growing up with most of her classmates from elementary school through graduation, Kachelhofer said May brings a bittersweet change.
“We all think about each other as little kids because I’ve grown up with the same Edgewood family,” she said. “And I think it’s nice that people aren’t necessarily bitter about the past, they’re kind of nostalgic about it. We’re all excited to see the future, but we all still love Homewood so much that we’ll all come back for the class reunions.”
Name: Timothy Wooley
Activities: Drumline, leader of tenor section, captain of tennis team, co-president of birthday club, Trinity UMC youth group, Patriot Pride Ambassadors
College Plans: Studying environmental science at Berry College
Looking back on his four years at Homewood High School, senior Timothy Wooley said his main regret is not being more involved.
While he was involved in several groups and activities — from being a section leader on drumline and captain of the tennis team to serving as co-president of the birthday club — Wooley said he let a few things get in the way of pursuing his interests.
“Don’t be afraid to do things because later on I realized there were things I could have been doing all four years that I didn’t, but the things I did do all four years, I’m so glad,” he said.
Homewood High School provides plenty of options to its students, Wooley said, and he would encourage students to take advantage of those opportunities.
“Homewood has helped me become a very well-rounded person in general because at Homewood, a lot of people will talk about how you can do different things,” Wooley said. “You’re not just a football player … you can be a member of different sports teams, and we have all different clubs.”
Classes at Homewood also helped guide Wooley to his college plans. He took several Advanced Placement classes, and said his AP environmental science class helped him decide on a college major. He also credits his teacher Melanie McBrayer for helping him develop a passion for the subject.
“She’s a very friendly person. She looks a lot like a typical environmental science person, but I think that’s really helped me get a feel for the subject and [learn] about it from someone who truly loves the subject,” Wooley said.
Although Homewood emphasizes the importance of academics, Wooley said the opportunity to pursue a variety of interests led him to select a liberal arts college, Berry College in Rome, Georgia. While he plans to major in environmental science in college, he also hopes to continue studying music and art.
“Being able to get a little taste of everything at Homewood has helped me realize what I want to do in the future because hopefully by the end of my college experience, I won’t regret missing out on something or won’t think, ‘I wish I had tried that,’” he said.
Name: Marquis Hollingsworth
Activities: Captain of drumline, co-president of birthday club, The Worship Center church, Patriot Pride Ambassadors
College Plans: Considering Auburn, Alabama and Jefferson State University
When Marquis Hollingsworth graduates from Homewood High School, there will be plenty of things he will miss: visiting the band room each morning, joking with his friends and football games are a few of those.
“Even the most irritating parts of high school, I’m going to miss everything,” Hollingsworth said.
He will take plenty of lessons from HHS with him, however. Hollingsworth said the activities he was involved in, including being captain of drumline and a member of the Patriot Pride Ambassadors, have prepared him for some of the real-world interactions he will face after high school.
“It’s helped us think on our feet and be adaptable to any situation,” he said.
As an ambassador, Hollingsworth said he learned to conduct himself in interviews and how to represent something bigger than himself. While he does not have an exact career path planned out, he said he wants to apply those skills in the future.
“I want to represent something,” he said. “I like talking to people. I like going places. I like helping people in general.”
Hollingsworth applied to Auburn, Alabama and Jefferson State universities and said he plans to audition for their music schools and marching bands before making a decision. In college, he hopes to minor in music and continue studying percussion and marching.
His passion for drumming developed during his time at Homewood High School, Hollingsworth said, and he is glad the school encourages students to pursue what they enjoy.
“Homewood is also good at, when you find something you like, they push you to be really efficient in the area,” he said.
One he started drumming, he was connected with activities and people who would help him improve, Hollingsworth said, including the drumline sponsor Darren Holbrooks.
“He’s helped me develop so much and not just as a drummer, but as a person in general,” he said. “He gives great life lessons, and he’s a great person.”
Hollingsworth said some of the difficult times he faced during high school made him appreciate what he has, and he encourages fellow students to enjoy life and get back up when it knocks them down. Graduation will be bittersweet, he said, but he is ready for what comes next.
“It’s been a fun ride, but I’m ready to get off it and get on the next one,” he said.
