Written by Rachel Hooker —
O’NEALS — I am a senior at Minarets High School, and have enjoyed my time at Minarets. During each year of high school I’ve learned that I can be brave, and have grown as a person and a learner. When I first came to Minarets, I was expecting it to be just a normal high school: heavy backpacks, lots of textbooks, and tons of homework on paper.
Then, when Michael Niehoff (co-founder and former principal) was talking about the culture and school philosophies to me, I realized Minarets was going to be a better experience.
It’s not just a high school, it is a high-tech school. I get do all of my work on a MacBook laptop, just like I would at a real job.
Minarets fosters excellent student-teacher relationships. Over the years I’ve gotten to know many of my favorite teachers.
Freshman year my favorite teacher was Mr. Watkins, because I loved the way he would joke around with me, and he had a good sense of humor. Eventually, he had to leave for another job.
Sophomore year, my favorite teacher was Mrs. DeHart. She became my favorite teacher because she would always braid my hair for me, and I could talk to her about anything and I trusted her with what I told her.
During Junior year I had some family problems with my dad and she would be there for me to talk to. Mrs. Dehart now works for the entire district, helping others.
The positive culture and upbeat attitude of Minarets allowed me to meet many new friends. When I first came to this school, I had no friends, but over time each day I made some new friends. We would always have lunch at the tables together.
I still hang out with my group of friends but, outside of that group, I met more friends from my classes and — throughout all of the years of high school — I made a new best friend. She has been my best friend since freshman year. We have been there for each other since the day we met.
I love to be at this school because I enjoy the way teachers have great relationships with the students. I enjoy that this school is a tech school and it’s a project-based school, and we get to do relevant assignments.
It’s my last year and I am going to miss Minarets after I graduate. However, the school changed my life and taught me how to be brave. I would definitely recommend this high school to people, and let them know that it’s a much different high school than others.
Rachel Hooker is a Minarets student enrolled in Digital Writing
