(Minh-Thu Vo/KRBD)
May 1 was National Decision Day, or the day that graduating Kayhi students made one of the biggest decisions of their lives: what they plan to do after high school.
Decision Day is the deadline for students to submit enrollment deposits to their college of choice. It’s tradition for students to wear apparel representing the college or program they’re committing to.
Some students are going to university, while others plan to go into a trade or vocational program. Some are still figuring things out. The hallways were filled with students wearing the school colors of colleges and programs all over the state and country.
Of this year’s seniors, 25% of students are staying in state for college.
Senior Gisele Noble will attend the University of Alaska Fairbanks, in part because she wanted to stay in state.
“Mostly for financial reasons,” Noble said. “I had a few options but thought this was the best decision for me. Plus I’m going out of college with no debt.”
About half of this year’s class will go to school on the West Coast. Senior Ahna MacManus is going to Gonzaga University on a pre-med track. She said she’s looking forward to moving to a new place.
“I’m most excited probably to meet new people and try new things because we don’t have access to a lot of stuff in Ketchikan, so I’m excited to actually go out of state,” MacManus said.
Senior Sophia Pilgrim is heading East to study public policy at Georgetown University.
“I’m a little bit apprehensive about whether I’m gonna really fit in with how fast paced and lively DC is,” Pilgrim said. “I’m also really excited because I know there’s going to be so many cool opportunities and so many different cultures I can immerse myself in.”
Just under 6% of this year’s Kayhi graduates will be going into a trade or apprenticeship program.
Senior Maika Olap found a passion for fixing and repairing cars during his time at Kayhi. He’s going into a diesel technician apprenticeship program after graduation.
“It is going to be a big change,” Olap said. “I am really excited because to be honest, getting into the whole mechanic program thing, it was last minute. It wasn’t until I moved here to Ketchikan, I realized I actually like fixing and repairing cars.”
Just over 5% of this year’s Kayhi seniors plan to go into the military, either through the Coast Guard, Navy, or aviation. That’s significantly higher than previous years. Last year, only 1% of the graduating class went into the military.
Senior Cayden Harney is enlisting to become a Navy Seal. This has been a lifelong plan for Harney.
“I’m super excited,” Harney said. “Now that I’ve finally made up my mind and fully committed, it’s literally the only thing I can think about.”
Senior Counselor Natasha O’Brien has been keeping track of the plans for this year’s seniors. She recently sent out a survey to the class of 2026 to find what they will be doing after graduation. She said a little over half of this class of seniors, 52%, are planning to attend a four year college. That’s more than recent years, she said.
O’Brien came out of retirement this year to fill the open counselor position at Kayhi. She said she’s glad she came back and was able to make a positive impact on this class.
“This class is a great group of kids and hopefully I had some impact or helped some kids with their plans and figuring out how to pay for their plans,” O’Brien said. “That’s been fulfilling for me.”
O’Brien said this will be her actual last year at the school, but she has one last message for the class of 2026.
“Just go out there and build your life and what you want it to look like.” O’Brien said. “Ask for help when needed, and know that if you make a mistake, we still love you. And there’s always, always a way back to the path that you’re looking for.”
107 Kayhi Seniors are set to graduate on May 24th in the Clarke Cochrane Gymnasium.
