ShawneeDispatch.com

Editor's note: This is one in a series of stories about the Class of 2010, a group of students at area high schools The Dispatch has followed since they entered high school as freshmen in 2006.

Although members of the class of 2010 just started their junior year, college is on many of their minds as they prepare to narrow their choices.

Nicole Garretson, who attends Mill Valley High School, is looking at in-state schools to continue her education.

"All of my family pretty much goes to Pitt State and my grandma lives (close) to there," she said of one of her choices. "I'm also thinking about KU because it is close to here, so a lot of my friends will go there."

Nicole, who plays basketball, volleyball and track, said she hasn't decided if she would like to play sports in college.

"I guess basketball I would probably play if I could," she said.

Steven Carver, who attends Shawnee Mission Northwest High School, also is hoping to play basketball in college.

"That's the only sport I'm playing this year," Steven said of basketball. "I'm being recruited and stuff by different schools."

Carver said he has given some thought to college, but he's keeping his options open.

"I've looked a little bit, but not necessarily at one particular one yet," he said.

Lisa Imgrund, who also attends Northwest, said she, too, has started looking into colleges.

"My dad and I have been researching colleges that have good animation programs and also a pretty good cross country team that are in the Midwest," she said. "We've been looking at Oklahoma, Arkansas and Illinois."

Lisa said she has gotten a chance to check out colleges by attending her brother's track meets.

"This past spring my brother had a track meet at Oklahoma and I got to run and check out the campus," she said.

During the summer Nicole, Steven and Lisa have been busy with their sports of preference.

Nicole played basketball and volleyball at summer camps, Steven played in basketball tournaments, and Lisa ran to keep in shape for cross country.

As the students get ready to start their school year, they also are preparing for more challenging courses.

"I'm taking precalculus honors and architecture," Steven said. "Architecture is going to be a fun one for me. My dad is and engineer and I've always been into that."

Nicole said she would be taking algebra II, parent and child development, U.S. history, chemistry and Spanish III.

Lisa will pursue her ambition in animation programs by attending the Broadmoor Technical Center, where students in Shawnee Mission USD 512 can take career-related courses that aren't offered at the main high schools.

"I am taking multimedia at Broadmoor Technical Center," Lisa said. "It's an animation class, so I'm really excited about that."

Classes for Lisa and Steven started last week, but homework and studying already have kicked in.

"Actually I have two tests over our summer reading tomorrow," Lisa said Sunday.

Now upperclassmen and no longer in the bottom half, Nicole, Steven and Lisa have noticed how groups or cliques of students have formed at their schools.

"Everybody has their cliques and stuff," Steven said. "I like to spread that out a bit and have friends in a lot of different groups."

Nicole said her group is called the sporty group because it consists of several people who play sports, but she doesn't think hanging out in cliques is a big deal.

"I think if you hang out with your friends, it doesn't really matter what your clique is or whatever," she said.

Cliques are unavoidable in high schools, Lisa said.

"You are going to hang out with whoever your friends are," she said. "That is just how teenagers are. You have your set group of friends that you grow up with."

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