As I finish my last week as a Parker student, I begin to reminisce about the institution I have attended for 14 years. It is still quite shocking that after next Thursday I will have officially ended my academic career here. As I get closer to this date, I ponder the Parker mission statement and the principles of progressive education–and whether I have been adequately molded into an individual who satisfies that criteria.

With regards to the institution itself, I believe that Parker has supplied me with the tools to properly take on the role and responsibility of being an alum. While I laud Parker for its unique educational environment, there are certain aspects of Parker that should be modified.

For most of my high school years, though this school has emphasized its commitment to diversity of all sorts, I think that Parker’s loyalty to alumni when it comes to admitting new students trumps all other qualifications and qualities.

As for political diversity, I don’t quite understand why so many people think it’s such a pressing issue. If a student can’t watch a conservative news channel for more than 30 minutes, how will they be able to tolerate conservative viewpoints for an entire semester or year? People who base their views upon beliefs and not facts will not add anything of substance to a classroom discussion and will only strengthen students’ confirmation biases.

Additionally, since an overwhelming number of conservatives are white, prioritizing political diversity would probably hinder Parker from achieving a more racially diverse student body.

On a different note, it is absurd how much power parents have over their children’s academics.

I don’t know how a student can grow academically when there is a parent who could override a teacher’s assessment of that student. Thus, because a teacher does not want to aggravate a confrontation with a parent over a child’s grade, they will either award the student with an undeserved higher grade or  simply lower their standards so that the same incident does not happen in the future.

This results not only in rewarding mediocrity but also in inadequately preparing some students for college.

With regards to the social climate at Parker, the amount of influence athletics have on dynamics outside of the classroom is concerning. I remember in middle school that the most accessible way to expand one’s social network was to join a sports team, even if you hated sports. I’d say this probably also happens in high school. If you do not join a sports team, you are put at a great disadvantage socially and prevented from entering the “main” social scene. I think it is ridiculous that people whose “sport” is something more mental and less physical aren’t looked up to as much as athletes.

To be clear, if I were to point out things I’ve enjoyed about Parker, I wouldn’t be able to stop writing. So thank you for reading this final column and possibly others throughout the year. I greatly appreciate it.