Freshman Billy Dent was comfortable during his first year at Northwest. He surrounded himself with his middle school friends and his basketball teammates. While he was overwhelmed by many seniors, he mostly stuck with his crew and his sport. 

      “I was doing , being comfortable with the people I hung out with,” Dent said.  “It really wasn’t until sophomore year where I started branching out and doing more activities.” 

     One of Dent’s other favorite things from his freshman year was his Radio TV class, the previous name of the video production class. He started to learn valuable skills when it comes to working with others and considering their opinions. 

     “I went freshman year with a very small group of boys that I hung out with to being a senior, being the managing editor of the paper and being kind of in charge of the Radio TV program,” Dent said. “I think those programs helped me because you’re always talking to new people.”

     Many other teachers helped Dent throughout his years at Northwest, and helped him to grow into the man he is today. 

      “I wrote this essay to get a scholarship,” Dent said. “ was like, ‘write about your three most influential teachers.’ They were , my Spanish teacher and my math teacher. They all taught me different things about life, rather than the actual subject.” 

     Dent thinks freshman year is important because it provides the foundation for the rest of a student’s high school experience. He works to influence the freshmen in his classes and on his teams to make great decisions and get out of their comfort zones. 

     “I didn’t take advantage of ,” Dent said. “I really try to push the freshmen my

class to go to clubs, events, dances and sports. You can see all different kinds of people and really find out what interests you.”