The academic year has wound down and with it, the high school careers of the Class of 2019. In all of the end-of-the-year chaos, between final exams and graduation, seniors find some time to showcase the results of their hard work on May 20: North Atlanta’s Decision Day celebration.

At schools across the country, Decision Day is an event where students commit to a school or declare the path they will take after high school. The North Atlanta College and Career Center works hand in hand with the school’s PTSA to offer seniors a high-profile chance to publically announce their post-graduation plans to their parents and peers. Students going to college, or those planning on serving in the military or those going straight into the workforce, were recognized during the event that took place in the school theater.

The venue was packed with the family and friends of the graduating class and the gathered seniors there made the room a colorful tapestry as all sported their college wear. “It really was a happy event to see everyone repping their schools and excited about where they are going,” said senior Parker Dingman, who is part of a large cohort of 2019 North graduates going to Georgia Tech.

For students in their last year of high school, a senior year is a real pressure cooker, with all the attendant pressures it brings and difficult decisions about where to attend college. On Decision Day, seniors could finally put a punctuation point on the long, arduous college-selection process. Senior Sonia Heredia, who will be attending Delaware State University in Dover, Del., said the process of finalizing future plans came with a great sense of relief. “After a stressful year of applications and essays, this is a really great feeling,” she said. “And when we celebrate what’s next, it really kind of lets you know what these four years of hard work have all been about.”

At the event, seniors could fully anticipate the coming college years, a life a stage that senior Benjamin Knerler said he’s ready for. “It feels good to know where I’m going and I’m pretty stoked for what the future may hold,” said Knerler, who will attend Appalachian State University in Boone, N.C., in the fall.

As the Class of 2019 prepares to trade an 11-story high school building for prestigious and well-known post-secondary destinations, there are plenty of reminders that their next life chapter is soon to begin. And there is no better – and more joyous – reminder than North Atlanta’s 2019 Decision Day.