Since the start of high school, sophomore Alan Vargas has challenged himself. He

took all the hardest courses his freshman year and continued this rigorous course

schedule into sophomore year.

Though he enjoys challenging himself academically, he faces challenges with maintaining

a regular sleeping schedule.

“This year I messed up my sleeping schedule more than last year,” Vargas said.

Like many students, Vargas has difficulty concentrating on his school work. Vargas

has a minor case of dyslexia, which is a learning disability that can impair one’s ability

to read or concentrate on words. Dyslexia makes it hard for Vargas to articulate his

thoughts when writing various assignments for school, such as English papers.

“I talk to myself when I type sometimes because I like to think out loud,” Vargas

said. “I always mess up on typing because I’m so dyslexic.”

Another source of distraction for Vargas is his favorite computer game, League of

Legends. Commonly referred to as “League” or “L.O.L.”, this video game allows players

to interact with friends on a team in a battle arena from the comfort of their own homes.

“I won’t be able to play League a lot next year because I’m actually planning to put

in a lot of effort,” said Vargas.

This year, Vargas participated in the Middle Years Program (MYP). The MYP requires

sophomores to complete a personal project, which is a project done over the course of the whole

year in four phases. This MYP project is a source of stress for many sophomores, but it can

serve as a good lesson in time-management.

“A lot of things went wrong this year, especially with projects. I needed to make

backup plans,” said Vargas.

Another good lesson in time-management is your ability to juggle extracurriculars

and academics. Vargas has high hopes for the clubs he is involved in next year.

“I want to meet and exceed expectations in the clubs and activities I’m a part of — Key

Club, Just World, and FCCLA,” said Vargas. “I hope FCCLA gets better though, since

I feel like some people only went for the parties.”

Recently, Alan Vargas became a Vice President of Just World Club. He will be in

charge of looking for exhibitors and speakers for the event.

“I’m really excited because I’ve noticed the executive boards of many clubs are all

sophomores.” said Vargas. “I’m excited to be working amidst my peers since we can

function efficiently and cooperatively.”

Alan has learned a lot from sophomore year and is looking forward to next year as

a junior. He advises rising sophomores to try their hardest.

“Don’t take the year too lightly just because you are not a junior or a senior. It’s harder

than you expect,” said Vargas. “Don’t blow it off. Make sure you do something you want

to achieve and can achieve.”