If you asked Nicole Joerger, senior, what her greatest passion in life was a few months ago, the answer might have been simpler. For Joerger, dance was her life — often practicing more than five hours every day, barely finding time to squeeze in homework, friends and journalism. However this year, she is taking a break from dance and looking at life through a new perspective.
“My parents told me that if I didn’t dance this year they would pay for my car insurance,” Joerger said. “So that was a way for me to save money. Also I’m taking AP classes, plus Amplifier, so I thought it would be good to have more free time.”
Finding just what to do with that free time is proving a little more difficult. Coming home without a full schedule is a foreign feeling for Joerger.
“It’s definitely strange to be able to sit down and just chill after school.”
That doesn’t mean she plans on relaxing her senior year away. As Co-editor-in-chief of the Amplifier, her plate is still full. Joerger has a long list of improvements and plans for the publication that she hopes to implement this year.
“I’ve learned a lot, and I want to put my ideas into place. I definitely want to be stricter with deadlines this year and stay organized,” she said.
Last year, Joerger unofficially took on a leadership position in the class, and discovered she enjoyed it. Over the summer, Joerger spent hours creating spreadsheets, plans and story ideas for the Amplifier to use in the fall.
“It just kind of happened naturally,” Joerger said. “I wanted to have better organization so I sort of took the issue into my own hands, and I found I really liked having a bigger role in class.”
Maybe that’s because it reminds Joerger of her future career aspirations as a teacher. Spending time with her little niece and nephew reinforces how much she wants to teach elementary school.
“They have such positive outlooks on life. They’re always smiling and are never stressed, which is a quality I admire,” she said.
No matter her focus in life, Joerger makes it seem easy. Even without ballet, leading a class, while keeping focused on the future, is no easy task. But after eleven years of dancing, Joerger has learned to balance her responsibilities with grace.
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