Makayla Barnes

Parents: Yolanda Barnes and Jonathan Barnes

Cumulative GPA and Class Rank: 3.9792, 2nd

Activities: Cheer, FBLA president, Advisor and Editor of the newspaper, FFA, track and field, Student Council, yearbook, band, choir, Quiz Bowl

Other clubs: Youth Legacy Alliance

Future plans: My future plans are to attend Indian Hills Community College to pursue my aspiration of being a nurse. I will transfer to the University of Iowa after I graduate from Indian Hills to further my education and become a nurse practitioner.

How will your high school experiences help you in the coming years? My high school experiences have provided me with several lifelong lessons that have altered the way I view things. Some lessons were incredibly hard to learn but I am grateful for them because I feel they have made me a more compassionate and understanding person.

Fondest memory of high school? My fondest memory of high school would have to be the very last football game I got to cheer at. I was incredibly grateful to have4 ended my last season surrounded by an amazing group of girls. It was a bittersweet moment but I will always be thankful for cheer and the lifelong friendships that came out of it.

Which teachers have had the biggest impact on you and why? The teachers who have had the biggest impact on me were Karen Fairchild and Michael Strasko. Both of these teachers are phenomenal people and that reflects when they teach. They both are very compassionate and understanding with all of their students, which helps students (including myself) feel like there is always someone here they can count on for support.

Who is your role model and how did they influence you? My role model is my dad who, sadly, passed away this August due to brain cancer. My dad was the most amazing, selfless person you wouldn’t ever met. He battled brain cancer for nearly 20 years, but never let it influence how he lived his life. He was grateful for every moment he got with people and never took anything for granted. Growing up, my dad had instilled these beliefs in my sister and me by just living this way every day. I will always be grateful to have had him as my dad.

What is special about your high school? Cardinal Community School District is very special because of its positive culture and it’s close-knit community. Everyone here knows each other’s names and people look out for each other.

If you could go back to when you were a freshman, what advice would you give yourself? If I could go back to freshman year, I would tell myself to slow down. I would say it’s OK to not have everything figured out and it’s OK to not be involved in every single thing. Find a handful of activities, clubs, or sports you love doing and stick to those, don’t force yourself to do something you don’t enjoy just because others want you to do something. Another thing I would say is it’s OK to not have a huge friend group. A couple of amazing friends who are always there for you are more valuable than a big group of friends who aren’t genuine friends. With that being said, remember to value all the time you get with people and make sure you tell people you care.

  Buy Photo