Senioritis: The yearning to burn those brick-like books and skip school on a daily basis just because there isn’t that little voice nagging in the back of your mind to just go. No, there is no such definition in any Webster’s Dictionary, but the same sentiment is buried deep in the hearts of most seniors as the year progresses.

But most graduates will tell you that the key thing is to fight it. Do whatever possible to keep senioritis at bay and focus. No matter how pointless senior year seems, no matter how bored one will get when taking study halls and joke classes, it is all just one small step in the grand scheme of your future.

Yes, most students find it convenient to not really care about maintaining a high GPA or getting all of the assignments done on time, but it isn’t necessarily the smartest idea. Most of the seniors are used to making deadlines and performing very well on tests all throughout the years of school. Now, the incentive to do so has washed away.

College transcripts and SATs are over, so what is left? Almost nothing—which is the accurate description of the rest of the senior year. The graduating class of 2015 must make sure, however, that they make it through unscathed. Even though the light at the end of the tunnel is near, and those young hearts just want to escape to the fluorescent dream known as college, it is paramount to stay on the straight and narrow to ensure that a crippling disease known as senioritis does not taint their futures.

As teachers with decades of experience under their belts, both Mr. Pecic and Mr. Wussler gave some interesting thoughts regarding senioritis to mull over throughout the year. Mr. Wussler claimed that teaching the students who get the disease makes the classroom a “battle to fight for a teacher.”

Mr. Wussler went further into detail describing the afflicted students as people whose attitudes shift in the negative direction. Both teachers agreed that the prime time for senioritis to set in is about March or April, right around when colleges accept enrollments for the fall term and students just seem stop caring about the last few months of high school.

Interestingly enough, the students are not the only ones susceptible to this disease. Both Mr. Pecic and Mr. Wussler revealed that even teachers could get a form of senioritis. They may get just as burnt out towards the end of the school year and start to feel a little tired of the daily routine. According to Mr. Wussler, “Once you get senioritis, it’s forever with you.” Both teachers said that there is no real way to snap out of it, and it must be “ridden out like a common cold.”

However, during the interviews, as a senior going to college, I wondered if senioritis would carry into freshmen year of college. The answer from Mr. Wussler was subtle but sang volumes for those who decide that this is the year to bring a pillow to class. “Problems stem from the individual, bad habits are bad habits.”

After interviewing Mr. Wussler and Mr. Pecic, it came as a realization that senioritis can affect all different types of people, even some deemed too focused to fall victim. What appeared as the most profound piece of advice came from Mr. Pecic, “You need to focus on the moment while preparing for the future.”

It is important to keep a fine balance between enjoying the perks of being a senior as well as keeping an eye on the ultimate prize of advancing your education to the next level. So please don’t burn those books (yet) and don’t skip too many days. These young men and women need to be able to make sure they stifle senioritis as it infiltrates the mind and just keep pushing through.