Although there are still heavy COVID restrictions in place, Spring Break of 2021 may have been the closest to normalcy that many students have experienced in over a year. With the vaccine being administered to several people in different vaccination groups across the globe, many student and general activities have begun to open their doors to more and more people. 

Emily Mazingo (11), was one of the many who took on the adventure of visiting colleges this spring break. Emily explained how she, “really enjoyed seeing some colleges that are high up on [her] list. It really helped [her] see what [she’s] looking for in a college and it was just so much fun seeing all the students and how beautiful the campuses were.” College visits are extremely important in deciding how students actually feel about applying to certain schools, so it is not surprising that this adventure is one that several high school juniors take on throughout their junior year. College visits give students the opportunity to figure out first hand the kind of qualities they are looking for in a college, helping them decide which schools they would be interested in applying to.

Due to COVID, many colleges closed their doors to college visits and tours and took away the opportunity for upcoming college students to make up their mind about applying; however, with the vaccine, colleges are beginning to open up to visits and future students are flocking by the masses to visit their dream schools to make up for the lost time. Similar to Mazingo, Callista Elica (11) also took on college visits this spring break. Callista explained how, “touring Lynn University and going through a commitment process for lacrosse, gives me hope for [her] future and getting an exciting experience.”

Another activity taken on by many Oakton students this spring break was spending time with family and friends in various locations. Olivia Lieberman (9) spent her spring break away in the Chesapeake and recounts how her favorite part of it all was, “spending down time with [her mom] because it’s been a really long time since [she] has gone anywhere.” Another student who spent some quality time with family away from

home is Sumner Spence (11). Spence took a trip to Penn state to visit her brother, stating that her favorite part about the visit was simply “seeing [her] brother because it’s been hard going from seeing him every day during quarantine to not seeing him at all.” Contrary to the exciting escapades of Lieberman and Spence, certain students had fun with their friends and family from the comforts of their own homes this spring break. Katie Le (11) enjoyed her spring break at home by “being able to spend time with [her] favorite people and not have to worry about any assignments or work for a while.”

Although many students use spring break as a chance to do new and exciting things, equally as many students spend their breaks from school having some much needed downtime. Students like Lizzie Thomson (11) and Sofia Forbes (11) used this spring break to take some time for themselves and take their mind off of the stresses of being a high school student. It is very common for students to become overwhelmed with the stresses of school and even just taking a few minutes to take a step back and relax can do students a world of good. 

With spring break over, students have a few more weeks to prepare themselves for the most stressful season of the year: testing season. However, since things are beginning to go back to normal and vaccines are being distributed, a summer of fun is sure to serve as a light at the end of the tunnel.