The end of the decade is upon us, and for most North students, it may be the first decade they’ll fully remember. (I’ll be honest, I was doing too much growing up to notice much between 2004 and 2010. But my parents tell me it was great.)

For teachers, however, it’ll be yet another one with many new memories made. The ups and downs of the past decade may have been something we all experienced, but teachers had their own separate memories made, both good and bad. Even though the decade went differently for every teacher at our school, the memories made will always be a part of what made this moment in history special.

World languages teacher Robin Oliver has had a momentous past 10 years, which included moving into his current home in 2011 and returning to North Atlanta to teach once again. Aside from the memories that will be missed, Oliver also misses his youth and times as a teen. “Having an excuse for acne is definitely something I miss,” he said.

Caitlin Tripp, North Atlanta’s AP World History teacher, has enjoyed the past four years of teaching at NAHS, as well as graduating from the University of North Georgia, getting married, and being named Teacher of the Year for the 2019-2020 school year. Aside from her times as a teen, Tripp says not much will be missed from the past decade, and is looking with great expectancy for 2020 and the years to come. “I miss my lack of responsibility as a teen,” she said. “Once I became an adult and had bills to pay and other expenses made me miss the times when I didn’t.”

Language Arts teacher D’Andra McPhail feels good about how the decade went, having graduated from the University of West Georgia and having bought a new car. “Although 2020 is coming soon, I feel like much won’t change. Many things will probably carry over, like social media, so it just feels like a cycle,” he said.

Although the entirety of the 2010-2019 decade may not be fresh in our minds, the impact it’s had on us is undoubtedly profound. A great number of events have occurred within the North Atlanta community, such as the relocation of the school into our current building, a broad range of academic and extracurricular achievements being reached, changes to the lunch policy, and many more. Teachers and staff members have high hopes for the future of the school in the next coming years. Although the decade is coming to an end, the Warrior spirit will live on.