August 1, before the rest of Acworth and Kennesaw started their days, NC’s senior class met on the lush football field to ring in the new school year together. Decorated in blue and orange leis, the freshly-minted seniors reflected on the last three years of their educational careers while simultaneously preparing to enter an era of their lives decorated by college applications and graduation parties. As the sun rises over the home seats of the Emory Sewell Stadium, the newest big fish stand ready to face the excitement of their final year of childhood at the annual Senior Sunrise.
As early as 6:15 in the morning, over 150 students arrived at NC to engage in the routine Senior Sunrise activities. From taking photos with friends to indulging in sugary confections, courtesy of Dunkin Donuts, seniors could sweetly document the start of the year with their closest friends. To follow in the tradition of Sunrise’s past, NC’s Tribal Connections—the organizers of this event—instructed students to wear white clothing to match their stunning smiles.
“What has me most excited is seeing the Class of ‘25 all come together and celebrate their last first day of highschool! It’s so exciting to see friends and take pictures. Our goal was to give our class a lasting memory and something sweet to start the year off,” senior class vice president Kayden Williams said.
In light of the recent increase of young people using digital cameras to document their lives, several NC seniors brought their own retro devices to Sunrise to capture their friends in action. From Nikons to Canon G7X’s, students wielded their artistic abilities to produce nostalgic content. Seniors then posted their photos on Instagram and Snapchat, which decorated their feeds with memories from the spirited morning. Students also captured photos of their painted parking spots or the Class of ‘25 designs on their cars to further illustrate their elation for the upcoming year.
Senior Sunrise marks the beginning of a series of senior events that act as celebrations of a new chapter. Several sports such as football, softball and wrestling plan to host senior nights to honor their oldest team members for their dedication over the years. Senior week similarly acts as a way for upperclassmen to dress up and document their college decisions and fun costumes as the end of the year approaches. As a recent development by Tribal Connections last year, seniors can also partake in Senior Sunset, where they meet again on the football field to remember the school year before they graduate.
“We [Tribal Connections] want to make these events really special because I feel like we all deserve it after how hard we have all worked for these past years. Planning senior sunrise was really special to me and I hoped to make it the best that we could’ve because it signified that we are reaching the end of our high school chapter in life and it honestly made me really emotional because I can’t wait to see all the great things that I know the class of 2025 will do,” magnet senior class president Isabella Alves said.
Congratulations seniors! The Chant can not wait to cover all of the feats accomplished by NC’s Class of 2025.
