Smedsrud balances work, school, life

High School is different for every student—it’s harder for some and easier for others. With advanced technology and a newer educational curriculum not only do students deal with school, some work and have personal issues that need to be taken care of. For some students it could be that their educational skills are not as strong as they desire, or it could be friendships and relationships. There is more to high school then what people see outside of the students’ shoes.
Damien Smedsrud is a junior at Custer Jr./Sr. High. He says it was intimidating his freshmen year—overwhelming as many say. He says that high school  started of as a challenging experience and thne slowly got easier. In the back of his head, he still underestimated himself and is scared of failure and disappointing the people that see him as a role model.
Little did he know he was not disappointing anyone. He pushed through classes and did his best. He juggled school and work and was still able to hold a social life. Though balancing all of those things were pretty stressful. At times I wanted to rip my hair out,” he said. His grades would vary and he stressed over work and school. He gained  a bad habit of an unhealthy sleep schedule, wanting to stay up all night to do his class work.
Luckily he had some helpful people, such as Mrs. Doyle. She listened to him when things got stressful and helped figure out a solution to the issues. With this he believes that high school has had a good impression on him. He said  the forced social aspect of school is better than anyone would have expected. Though with the pros, come the cons, such as the school can sometimes be unforgiving. He believes that there can be unnecessary drama.
With all his ups and downs he has met his goals and hopes to reach more. In two years from now he would like to be in a higher position in his current job, as he wants to stay in the Black Hills.
Even with the struggles that high school students face, Damien has powered through as many other before him, overcoming the environmental change in school and the technology challenges that many students face. It is still possible to overcome struggles and challenges to succeed in high school.