With the end of the 2023-2024 school-year, we say goodbye to the graduating class of ’24. Amongst this class is Fiona Novick, an academically and artistically inclined student who we will miss here at Hidden Valley High School. During her senior year, she led Crochet Club as president, creating some of her best memories with her friends. Fiona showed her leadership in other areas such as National Beta Club, National Honor Society, and volunteering at the SPCA.
Fiona’s favorite teacher at Hidden Valley was Mrs. Griffin; she taught her the most and prepared her for life after high school. Fiona plans on going to Virginia Western Community College for business after graduation, and after two years at Western, transferring to Roanoke College to finish her degree. “While I’m ready to graduate and move on from high school, I’m going to miss the community and connections formed here with students and teachers,” she feels. All her best memories involved experiencing high school with her friends, learning and growing with them, and connecting with new opportunities after high school.
“If I had to go back and start high school again, I would have one big piece of advice for myself- do your best to open up to new people and ideas,” Fiona said. She also wishes that she would have participated more athletically. While she was involved with many clubs in school and organizations outside of school, she never really got into sports. “I always wished I played tennis or something; seeing how connected the teams were made me feel like I missed something,” she expressed. She felt too afraid to try out, but if she took her advice and kept an open mind, she feels that she would have given tennis a shot and maybe made some new friends and memories.
“One important lesson I gathered from my four years at Hidden Valley High School was to always keep trying,” Fiona said. She did not think to explore poetry until her last year of Hidden Valley when she thought it was too late for her to try. With the support of her English teachers and friends, she was able to keep trying at poetry, and eventually won an award for her writing. “I never thought I could do it, but I did. And I wouldn’t have been able to without Hidden Valley,” Fiona feels.