What makes us as happy as a clam at high water?

By Oleksandr Boiev, ‘25

Student happiness is directly related to their academic performance at MAST@FIU. Without it, students would not enjoy any sort of activities they do in school, and it would negatively affect their mental state. However, because our student body is so diverse, it is hard to pin down exactly what makes the students happy.

So where do our high school students draw happiness, and what are specific things that make them happy?

After interviewing students of all grade levels, I found interesting results. For example, when asked this question, ninth grader Angelina Williams was able to sum it up by saying, “Seeing the people around me makes me very happy”. Due to this being the third freshman to give that answer in a row, it is possible to make a hypothesis that freshmen become happy when they see not only their friends, but people who are going through the same troubles and challenges that they are going through as well, at school or anywhere else.

Another idea introduced by a sophomore Trevor Bello was, “The less work I get, the happier I am”. Most sophomores said something similar (absence of work, free time, and time to rest) and that shows that many sophomores consider free time their main happiness factor.

Many of the juniors said something along the lines of, “Seeing my friends and being able to hang out with them”, as junior Andres Rondon stated. This, and some other outlier comments about close personal relationships, reveal the fact that during the most stressful year with more work and exams, students are able to find contentment in close friendships and support from people they feel in some way attached to.

At last, the majority of seniors provided mostly a general answer about being back in school. Senior Kae’Driona Heath said, “To be back in person and have the opportunity of enjoying the last year in high school with my friends” Kae’Driona Heath (Grade 12). Those statements depicted the class of 2022 as students who are enjoying all benefits of physical learning that they did not fully appreciate prior to the COVID pandemic.

Ultimately, happiness cannot be connected to a certain race, gender or other qualities that are fixed. Happiness is completely distinct from student to student and even though most students had general answers, some also had unique preferential answers stemming from their own passions and experiences; music, drawing, money, family, working, and even food were among other answers students gave to this question. MAST@FIU students, with unconventional interests and hobbies, create a diverse student body that contributes to our gleeful in-school environment.

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