Mizael Harris

Sophomore Mizael Harris was looking forward to finishing out his last year as an underclassman with all of his friends. Because of quarantine, Mizael now looks forward to being able to see all of his classmates this fall as a junior. “I miss my friends and I am excited to see everyone the next starting school year,” he said. 

Harris, who plays for the varsity boys soccer team, was one of the fortunate student athletes who was able to play through the entirety of his season, as some winter and all spring sports were canceled or cut short due to COVID-19. As boredom strikes in quarantine, Harris is turning to soccer to help clear his mind. “Something that helps me relieve stress during quarantine is taking a break and playing with a soccer ball outside in my backyard,” he said. “[It] helps me get my mind off of some things.”

During the school year, Harris said that he maintains good mental health, and only felt some pressure during soccer season as he balanced the challenges of being a student athlete. When Harris did feel stressed out, he said that he said that he would “[get] some fresh air and not [focus] on the bad.”

As Harris navigates through quarantine, he finds digital learning days to have both positive and negative aspects both a positive and negative experience overall. “DLDs are much easier than physically going to school, but it affects me negatively because I am not able to see my friends and interact with other people,” he said.

Overall, Harris said that he manages online learning by practicing “good time management during DLDs.” He likes to get done with his schoolwork as soon as possible, “so that I can have as much free time as possible at the end of the day,” he said.

Along with playing soccer outside, Harris has also spent time playing board games with his family to help pass the time at home. During this time away from school, Harris feels like his mental health has been good because “I am much more relaxed,” he said.

Quarantine has not had an especially major impact on Harris, but like many, he misses seeing his friends while walking the halls of the school. For any students that are having a hard time in quarantine, he suggests, “just try and make the best of things.”