Image courtesy of CSD Student Life

One of the perks of being a CSD Spartan senior is priority seating (standing) at fall football games.

At CSD, things are different when you are a Spartan senior.

The perks of being a CSD senior started bright and early on the first day of school with Senior Sunrise, a new Tradition that is starting to gather steam. Many of the 140 seniors arrived at school at 7:30 and were immediately greeted by staff holding boxes of donuts and t-shirts. The t-shirts read “this is just the beginning” on the front with an image of a cassette on the back.

Attending Senior Sunrise felt like a dream. I couldn’t believe that I was the one standing up in the field, along with my best friends, instead of the ones hearing about it later that day.

Time has really flown. It felt like yesterday I was up on that same field for eighth-grade lunch, watching all the high schoolers come in and out of the building and wondering what it would be like. 

Emma Davis (‘24) agreed with me. She said, “When I was an underclassman, I always heard about Senior Sunrise and couldn’t wait for the day it was my turn.”

That first morning was filled with even more excitement. Even before Senior Sunrise, the class of ‘24 finally got to park in the small and highly coveted student parking lot—no more early mornings filled with rushing to school and struggling to parallel park on side streets or trying to create parking spaces that weren’t really there.

Personally, I was relieved that I wouldn’t have to worry about hitting a curb or a tree again.

Parking became official during the second week of school when seniors picked up parking passes. While a parking pass might seem like a small thing, we’ve been waiting for this since sophomore year when we started driving. 

Hanging up our car pass on the rearview mirrors for the first time was a refreshing feeling. 

Seeing her student parking pass hanging in her car was “something I’ve always wanted,” said Corrina Pergola (‘24). “I  would see my senior friends last year with them and was always jealous. Now that I have one, I feel like an official senior.” 

The most refreshing and enjoyable perk I’ve had so far is not having to pack a lunch on Fridays. On Fridays, lunches are thirty longer so that the senior class can enjoy a nice lunch off campus. While freshman, sophomores and juniors must remain in the building, seniors are allowed to leave school if their parents grant permission.

In years past, I’ve always been jealous of seniors who leave school then come back carrying some types of food. 

This year, it’s my turn. Halfway through each week, all the talk becomes, “where are you going for senior lunch?” or “what are we doing Friday lunch?” 

I’ve gone out to eat for the past four Fridays, visiting places ranging from Chick-fil-A fast food to nice, sit-down restaurants like “Hello, Sailor” overlooking Lake Norman.

Truth be told, senior lunches are my favorite perk of being a CSD senior. leaving campus for an hour and enjoying lunch with my friends will be something I’ll always remember. 

While these are just some of my favorite senior perks, there are plenty more that others enjoy, too. CSD seniors get dedicated WiFi, priority seating (standing at the gate) at the football games, top picks for advisory and intersession, free snacks and candy starting mid-year and so much more.

Even though all of these perks will be something that makes my senior year unforgettable, what I’m most looking forward to is senior putt putt, one of the last perks of the year. Yes, the day before senior flex week begins, senior golfers play putt-putt throughout the hallways. Others join in as caddies while even more line the halls and watch. Senior putt putt is something my class has been anxiously awaiting since we first saw it three years ago. 

While May seems like an eternity away, my class will be putt putting our way into senior flex week and then the next thing I know we will be putting on a blue cap and gown and walking across a stage with friends and classmates, some going back as far as kindergarten and some I’ve just met senior year, receiving our diplomas.