SAN JOSE CALIF. – High school students here at Silver Creek have found strength to balance work, school and extracurriculars in today’s busy society. 

Highschool on its own is an extraneous responsibility in the transition from childhood to adulthood. Having to manage grades, maintaining a high GPA, assignment, and deadlines are all expected in school, but just think of how extracurriculars like being employed and participating in a sport is an addition to stress. They not only take up a fraction of one’s time but also allows individuals to adapt to the concept of balance and time management.. 

Senior Omar Ventura is an example of an athlete, student and worker. Ventura is a referee for middle school flag football teams earning between $56-$87 per game while putting up at least 6 hours of work weekly. He plays for the varsity boys basketball team, practicing every day except Sundays for 2-3 hours as well as multiple games weekly, all while having a full schedule at school. He balances being a student athlete and employee by having a set schedule and goals he strives to accomplish daily. The burden can sometimes become overwhelming but he has been able to adapt to being okay with sacrificing his personal time for his ambitions. Making his parents proud is the motivation he has to be the best at what he does. “For other student-athlete-employees that are struggling with learning how to balance, remember your “why” factor. For me, thinking about making my parents proud really gets me going and motivates me. Although there can be some hard times, just think about the end goal you have in mind. It can be about getting that A, the paycheck, or even that spot on the team. You are building up to something and that is very important.” Ventura says. 

Junior Jayla Rodriguez, is also an athlete, student and worker but a differing factor is her playing for a club team and a school team. Rodriguez is an employee at Happy Hollow Park and Zoo putting up 8 hours every Saturday and Sunday, getting paid $17.55 an hour. Even with being a junior in high school her academic course load consists of advanced placement classes and regular classes. She not only is taking AP English Language but also AP Environmental Science which has double the work then a regular class. Rodriguez explained how stress and anxiety is a continuous feeling she feels daily and has even begun to affect her mental health. “Recently it feels like I have to do everything in such a short amount of time. It feels like I never have enough time to do everything, making me feel like a failure due to the amount of pressure I put on myself.” To help ease her stress she likes to relax and distract her mind by reading or baking sweet treats. Playing club soccer overlaps with work, especially on game days which are usually on weekends and with school, it doesn’t allow her to fully focus on her academics since sports is a lingering thought in her mind.

Photo Credit: Janelle Troche Gonzalez

“Advice I would give to students in similar situations to me is to invest in a planner or something that you know will help you keep track of everything. I would also recommend building good study habits so that you have a strong foundation to be built upon to ease stress. Most of all, I would recommend taking time for yourself every once in a while. Recognize everything you do and appreciate yourself. You deserve a break every once in a while and it’s okay to take them. You cannot be the best version of yourself if you don’t feel good within.” Rodriguez says.