“[Honors Biology] is one of the hardest classes I’ve ever taken. The most challenging thing is [the] little time [we get] in between units. The biggest part of honors [classes] is that you have to not only listen to your teacher well in class and really pay attention, but also have to be willing to help yourself understand it. My parents have always been my biggest motivators because they’ve pushed through all the challenges in their lives and have become successful people. They motivate me every day to try my best, especially in my honors classes, [because] they do things that I know will be best for me in the future, [even if] they are hard now. I want teachers to know that I really do care about all the work that they give me. I hope they understand that being an athlete in high school is hard to balance school and activities, [but] I want them to know that I will always do my best and try my hardest.” -Ally Sundermeyer, 9