Second semester of senior year marks the culmination of four years of hard work and the final step between childhood and adulthood. It is time of celebration of friendships, academics, clubs and the future. For three members of the class of 2015, second semester meant studying abroad and immersion in various internships, tourist attractions and classes. After their final exams this past winter and last spring, Hana Koppel, Hannah Firestone and Toko Okada packed their bags and embarked on a journey abroad. There are various reasons that took them each over seas; the unique cuisines and fantastic traditions are just the beginning.

Hana Koppel
This past semester, after turning in her last AP European History exam, Hana Koppel packed her bags and traveled to London to begin her studies at the University of Roehampton. Currently, Koppel is enjoying the different academic structure and ability to travel all over Europe in a matter of hours. In class, Koppel focuses her studies on a sociology class called Making Sense of Society, a theatre course and a class focusing on London’s history.

“The work here is much easier than back at DHS. I have had no homework, only 4 essays total and one exam coming up in early May for my sociology class,” Koppel said.

Besides for studying Koppel has spent much of her time in Europe traveling, since she lives just 40 minutes away from Central, the innermost part of London. There she can visit the National Gallery and the royal palaces. Additionally, Koppel has traveled to Dublin, Rome, Florence and Morocco during her semester abroad.

“The most exciting things I’ve done was probably going to Ireland over St. Patrick’s day weekend, riding camels in Morocco or going for a gondola ride in Venice,” Koppel said.

During her time away, Koppel has missed her “stage crew family” and thinks of them each time she sees a photo of a new set that they created. She expresses that although this has been very difficult, her decision to study abroad during the second semester of her senior year was very practical and beneficial. Not wanting to get a “late start” on college, Koppel decided to take advantage of her time thi s past semester rather than a gap year.

“The hardest thing about leaving [DHS] was that life went on without me. . . I wanted to be able to experience college at the same time as my friends. So instead of taking a year off, I graduated early,” Koppel said.

Over the summer, Koppel plans to find a job here in Deerfield and is excited to begin preparing for her freshman year at Illinois State University. Additionally, Koppel’s family will be joining her for two weeks in Scotland before she comes home. Until her homecoming, she is excited for the rest of the things in store for her these next few weeks. She is thankful for her experience at DHS and carries her memories and education with her everywhere.

“I find myself thinking about Ms. Crowley a lot when I explore Europe and learn more of the history because I learned so much European history through her,” Koppel said.

Hannah Firestone
Unlike Koppel and Okawa, Hannah Firestone has not only traveled abroad during her time off, but she has explored the United States, doing work for the government and a small business. What initially guided her decision to graduate early was her desire to travel to Thailand with the family she babysits for, but she realized that her time off was extremely valuable because it has allowed her to experiment with different fields before choosing a major or future career.

“I initially decided to graduate early because I wanted to go to Thailand. . . Thailand was amazing and exciting and beautiful every day. . . I realized there that this was a time I could really take advantage of,” Firestone said.

After her time in Thailand, Firestone worked for a small business in Arkansas doing personal and business taxes. Firestone explains that her experience gave her lots of useful knowledge about the field of business accounting and that she has enjoyed the freedom that a job allows where you only need to focus on your work and not outside responsibilities.

“The experience of Arkansas was super relaxing because I could just focus on my job without a bunch of outside responsibilities. I was being productive, but not burned out, so it was really good for me.The culture in Hot Springs, Arkansas is basically the opposite of Deerfield, so that was interesting as well.”

Aside from her time abroad and in the workforce, Firestone is currently at her home in Deerfield enjoying her time off before attending Amherst College in Massachusetts this coming fall. Additionally, she is looking forward to an internship with the legal counsel for Governor Scott Walker in Wisconsin this summer, where she will be doing research as an administrative assistant. The excitement that her time off, job and travels have created have made graduating early worth it for Firestone, but she shares that the decision was a very difficult one to make.

“I’d be hard pressed to name a teacher I won’t miss. The reason it was hard to decide to graduate early was 99 percent because I’d miss out on half a year of learning from my amazing teachers,” Firestone said.

She looks back on her four years with great satisfaction; the endless memories that she continually replays in her head have reminded her how much her time at DHS meant to her.

“Now that I’m thinking about this I wish I could rewind four years and do it all over again the exact same way,” Firestone said.

Toko Okada
Graduating during the spring of her junior year at DHS, Toko Okada moved to Japan and began studying at the Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University. The choice to move to Japan seemed natural for Okada who has been traveling to the country every winter break since she was extremely young. Through her visits she quickly fell in love with the culture, people and the uninterrupted time she could spend with her grandparents.

“Being able to live close to my grandparents is one of the reasons I came back to Japan. Before I only saw them once a year, although we were very close, now I have much more time to spend with them,” Okada said.

Now, Okada has completed her studies as a first year student at this university that educates students from over 80 countries. One of her favorite aspects of studying abroad has been the diverse atmosphere that surrounds her, in and out of the classroom. Okada has specifically loved becoming further immersed in Japanese culture and language, many of her classes are taught in Japanese.

“Once I get out of my room, I see Vietnamese people cooking, Indian people and Uzbek people gathering and doing group work. I experience many culture shocks, but that’s the fun part of studying here,” Okada said.

At the moment, she is pursuing a major in international relations and Asian Pacific language, hoping to prepare herself for a career that allows her to work with many different people from various backgrounds. Compared to DHS Okada explains that a key difference is the aspect of diversity and how everyone has a different past that they want to share.

“My everyday life here is the most exciting thing… Half the university students are Japanese, but the other half is from all over the world … I now live in a dorm where all of those international students and Japanese students live together, so everyday life is exciting,” Okada said.

As summer is quickly approaching, Okada has plans to travel around Asia with her friends. She is specifically looking forward to exploring Vietnam, Taiwan and Indonesia to interact with the local people and understand what their daily lives are like. She hopes that this summer will be an introduction from what the rest of her life will look like because she never wants to stop traveling. Although she has missed her senior year and many of the DHS traditions that come with the territory, she is nothing but enthusiastic about her decision to study abroad.

“I know I have missed out many things because I didn’t experience senior year of high school, but I’ve earned so much by graduating early and coming to the most globally diverse universities in the world,” Okada said.