Well Boulder High, it’s that time of year. It feels like just yesterday I was writing my first article about the rise of flip-flops, and now here I am writing my final one. On May 17th, the senior class of 2026 will be tossing our caps in the air and saying goodbye to the halls of BHS. Soon enough, you’ll start seeing songs like “Where’d All The Time Go?” by Dr. Dog and “Heroes” by David Bowie take over Instagram feeds, and we’ll all get that brief, delusional feeling of being on top of the world before heading into whatever comes next. 

High school looks different for everyone, but as we close this chapter, we can look back on these four years with a mix of nostalgia and grace. The world has been a lot lately, and growing up over the past four years hasn’t exactly been easy. But somewhere between emerging from COVID and settling into high school life, our class landed in a pretty unforgettable stretch of time, with many moments we probably didn’t realize we’d miss.

Today, I’m here to highlight some of the most memorable BHS events from 2022 to 2026, the kind that bring back that nostalgic feeling for seniors, along with a few pop culture occurrences that defined the world right alongside us. So grab your rose-colored glasses and let’s take a trip through the years.

Fall 2022: Freshman season – the first football games and a vague feeling of anticipation. The beginning of the year was marked by the new normal of no longer needing masks, and as we started getting to know each other, high school slowly felt more comfortable. On September 8, 2022, Queen Elizabeth II passed away, a moment many students still remember exactly where they were for (I was in world geography). It sparked immediate online chatter and was hard to miss. At the same time, much closer to home, the investigation involving Ilir “Jack” Sokolaj, an employee at Brooklyn Pizza, created unease and confusion within the community. And on November 15, 2022, the world population officially reached 8 billion people — though somehow, the Boulder bubble felt smaller than ever.

Spring/Summer 2023: As the weather warmed, spring sports kicked off, Troupe 60 was working on “Mary Poppins,” friend groups solidified, and we were just excited to not be at the bottom of the school anymore. Election buzz started, and pop culture amped up. Taylor Swift and Beyoncé both began their world tours, dominating conversations everywhere. On June 18, 2023, Titan, a submarine operated by the American expeditions company “OceanGate,” imploded during an expedition to view the wreck of the Titanic. This was a tragic and sad incident that was being closely followed by many students online, so it felt appropriate to include it. On a lighter note, the movies Barbie and Oppenheimer (Barbenheimer) dominated the box office in movie theatres, and most students went to see one or both!

Fall 2023: Sophomore autumn brought the smell of coffee, rainy mornings, and the feeling that summer ended too soon. School events were in full swing, and football season returned — including the classic Panthers vs. Fairview rivalry. Just across Broadway, Deion Sanders and the “Prime Effect” put Boulder on national news, bringing unprecedented attention to CU football. At the same time, the ongoing tension between rappers Drake and Kendrick Lamar had students hooked, proving that pop culture drama was just as important as homework.

And, in a moment that somehow perfectly captures the unpredictability of BHS, one student literally got stuck in the middle of it all. During the first semester, Dan Osterman, ‘26, fell while walking up the third-floor courtyard staircase and managed to get his head stuck between the railing bars, a sentence that still sounds made up. As Osterman explained, “I was going up to my German 2 class for first period. I was walking up the stairs, and I tripped and fell all of a sudden. When I fell, I somehow miraculously didn’t hit my head on the banister. No, I fell through and got my head and neck stuck in it.” Osterman continued, “They called in the SRT team, who called 911. When the firefighters showed up, they took over. They basically put what was like butter on my head, had me get on my knees, and then slowly pulled me out.” Despite the chaos, Osterman was sent home by Dr. Morales… not exactly how anyone plans to start their morning. Looking back, he reflects on it with humor: “In the moment, yeah, I thought it was the school’s fault, but now, not really. I mean, how could you predict that? The chances of me going through the hole instead of hitting my head are kinda crazy. That probably saved me from a concussion.” And the story doesn’t end there. “When they got grant money to improve the school, they made the holes in the railing smaller,” he said. “So you could say my legacy at BHS was getting them to make the railing holes smaller.” If that’s not a peak sophomore-year highlight, I don’t know what is.

Spring/Summer 2024: The PSAT hit us in the spring of 2024, almost like a wake-up call for junior year on the horizon. It’s fuzzy on when this happened, but allegedly, the band room’s roof collapsed sometime during this era, which I’m sure was fun for musicians to experience as they worked to rehearse the soundtrack for BHS theatre’s spring production of “Big Fish.” Outside of school, Charli XCX’s “Brat Summer” began, and the 2024 Summer Olympics took over global attention from late July to mid-August.

Fall 2024: And just like that, we were juniors. The year everyone warned us about lived up to its reputation. Grades were harsh, ACT and SAT scores were brutal, and everyone was feeling the fatigue. In September, a suspect drove a pickup truck onto Folsom Field during a police chase, shocking the Boulder community. That same month, Sean Combs (Diddy) was arrested, sparking widespread online discussion despite the seriousness of the situation. In November, Donald Trump won the presidential election after a long campaign season, adding to an already intense year. By the time the Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson fight rolled around, everyone was more than ready for a break.

Spring/Summer 2025: Junior spring was a mix of stress, cold weather, and watching the class of 2025 graduate — making everything feel a little more real. The spring musical “Matilda” was a standout moment for BHS Theatre. Meanwhile, TikTok nearly being shut down caused widespread panic for obvious reasons. In California, the Palisades and Eaton fires raised concern for many students with ties to the West Coast. Then came the #SpeakYourMIND Ice Bucket Challenge, which spread rapidly across schools (especially here, our very own editor in chief nominated me). Summer passed by quickly, as it always does, and soon the leaves would turn brown at Boulder High for us one last time.

Fall 2025: As the sun rose on our senior year and we decorated cars with big letters and drawings, we actually felt it… We were the oldest. 12th grade had begun, and BHS was a little bit different for us. The senior lot was set up in a completely different way than years before, classes were longer, and most importantly…BHS had new, slightly different stairs! Locally, the temporary closure of DDS (a popular gas station) added to the usual Boulder rumors and conversations. As this was happening, political commentator Charlie Kirk was shot, the Epstein Files began to be released, and the stress of college decisions began to morph into the weight of the world on our shoulders. All we could do was submit applications and hope for the best.

Spring 2026 (Now): January started with the news that Dr. Morales would be leaving BHS, marking the end of an era for our class. Seniors in theatre took their final bow in “Chicago,” and excitement built as long-awaited new episodes of the TV show Euphoria began releasing.

Now, we’re back to the present. Sitting on the edge of May, with diplomas being finalized, everything is moving both fast and slow at the same time. It’s easy to focus on what’s next, but this moment matters too.

So, seniors, take it in. Be with your friends, your families, and make the most of these last few weeks. To the underclassmen, enjoy your time here. I know everyone says this, but it really does go by faster than you think.

I want to leave you with this quote by one of my favorite singers, Lorde:

“All my life I’ve been obsessed with adolescence, drunk on it. Even when I was little, I knew that teenagers sparkled. I knew they knew something children didn’t know, and adults ended up forgetting.”

Thanks for reading. Bye, Boulder High 🙂