With graduation approaching, the Milestone decided to see if the seniors of McNicholas High School feel prepared for life after graduation, whether that is attending college, pursuing a trade, joining the military, or immediately joining the workforce. The Class of 2026 shared their reasons for choosing their specific life paths and how faculty and staff have assisted them with feeling their level of preparedness.
Madison Zurmehly said, “Yes, I do feel prepared for life after graduation. I have my college decision [University of Louisville] and major [nursing] made, and I’m excited for the rest.”
Melinda Gehm said that she feels “The workload [At Cincinnati State, pursuing Aircraft Tech] will be more” work than what she has completed at McNicholas.
Caleb Naumann said he feels prepared for life beyond high school. “Yes, McNicholas has great academic courses and great teachers who push me to work hard.”
Many were unsure about how prepared they were for life after graduation. Lucinda Thompson said, “I feel like I am prepared for college, but not for being an independent adult later on.” Mia Colonna said, “I feel prepared in a sense because I feel like I am ready for the next steps of independence and freedom, but there are also a lot of uncertainties.”
According to McNicholas High School, 98% of McNicholas students attend college after graduation. Students also explained their reasoning for attending college. Colonna said, “I chose this path [college] because I want to receive a higher education to give me a strong foundation for my future.”
Jules Rivas said, “I want to attend college because I want to be a teacher in the future,” while Ella Zech stated, “I chose to go to college to play college-level soccer and continue my future plans revolving around the sports side of life.” While statistics state that the majority of McNicholas graduates choose the path of college, some students decide to pursue other life paths. Eli Losekamp said he is pursuing a trade because “I wanted to do something that I would be able to work with my hands.” Jackson Loving said, “I am choosing to become a plumber because there is always a need for plumbers and they have a steady income.” Gabby Petri said, “My plan after high school is to go study cosmetology at Aveda Institute, and hopefully one day either open my own salon or work at a highly rated one. I chose this path because it was just something that stuck out to me over everything, and just something I really wanted to do.”
Whether their next step is college, a trade, military, or going straight into the workforce, seniors reported their level of certainty is because of the support and assistance they have received from McNicholas faculty and staff. Gracie Mastruserio said, “Mrs. Noble [English] for sure has helped me feel prepared. She has been such a great help with all the college stuff and helping us feel prepared for the real world. Mrs. Buot [math] has also given us good advice on math classes in college, as she was a professor at Xavier University.” Zech said, “The Counseling Department has helped me feel prepared. From my sophomore year to now, each counselor has influenced my opinion and each decision I made. Whether that was what major I intended to do or where I’d like to see myself in the next four years.”
Colonna said, “Ms. Gaskins has helped me feel prepared because of the way that she teaches her students to become strong and independent thinkers. I also gained a lot of experience with responsibility and independence from the Europe trip that I took with her this past summer, as she trusted us with a lot of responsibility.”
The McNicholas Milestone 