Senioritis: The most contagious disease. Symptoms include lack of motivation to complete assignments, skipping classes and an inability to focus on anything besides graduation and getting the heck out of high school. 

Some seniors, like Ellie Palombo, have been suffering from this sickness longer than just senior year. Now, as she is approaching the end of her fourth year, her illness has only intensified. 

“[Seniors] don’t care to do [their] work or go to class because [they] already know [they] are going to graduate, so what is the point?” Palombo said. “We know we already got [into a college].”

The point, however, in Palombo’s case, is that college is expensive. The price tag on college is one that seems almost impossible to stomach that is, unless, you have a big-ticket scholarship. Although Palombo said she is falling behind in her classes, she has to do her work because her college will take her final transcript into consideration when deciding on scholarships. But, for Palombo, the incentive to get scholarship money is not enough to cure her of her troubling condition.

“My teachers have started to get on me about my missing [assignments], and my poor grades,” Palombo said. “I get behind because I don’t care, and it is hard to focus because I’d rather be doing anything else. They tell me that I just need to focus, sit down and do my work. I say, ‘I just can’t do that right now.’”

Dr. Joshua Flores, assistant principal in charge of the senior class, said he has noticed a stronger feeling of senioritis feeling amongst students since returning after first semester, but said peak senioritis season will occur after spring break. Flores said he believes many kids are skipping class because they aren’t motivated. With Infinite Campus, everyone can view absences, tardies and grades, including parents. When Flores notices a certain student is showing a pattern of poor attendance, he calls home. 

“I try to have as many conversations with [students] as possible about why they need to be here and why it is important,” Flores said. “It is a little bit tricky right now. A lot of students, if we did have an attendance policy, wouldn’t be able to graduate because they are missing so many classes that they wouldn’t be able to earn credit.”

The sickness has also infected Jake Johnson, senior. He said he’s “[flipped] his clock to college time,” causing his missing assignments to pile up. 

“Our GPAs are all already pretty much set and our ACTs are all done, so what’s the point of really trying right now?” Johnson said. “We are all doing our best, I guess. I’m only trying in marketing. That’s the only class I care about.”

The lack of a set attendance policy is not keeping suffering seniors from skipping class. Johnson’s grades have also continued to remain above average, which isn’t pushing him to do any work outside of school since homework isn’t weighted as heavily as tests. He said he thinks senior teachers realize that senioritis is a real thing, so as long as you are trying to pay attention in class and making good grades, you should be fine. 

“When my parents get on me about doing my homework, I do it,” Johnson said. “If they would get on [me] about showing up, I’d show up. For this senior class, not having an attendance policy is brutal. We are just trying to get through [the rest of high school] by whatever means necessary.”