Students in high school and college are having a difficult time coming back and socializing with others.

According to, “Teens aren’t socializing in the real world. And that’s making them super lonely,” by Jayne O’Donnell, “The percent of high school seniors who said they often felt lonely increased from 26 percent in 2012 to 39 percent in 2017. The number of 12th graders who said they often felt left out also increased, from 30 percent in 2012 to 38 percent in 2017.” Furthermore, with Covid-19 putting everyone into isolation, High school students and College students have had the hardest time socializing. In a random survey of 113 Morton East students, 67 students said they had a difficult time getting back into mingling with peers and 46 students said they had no trouble at all. This is shocking to see because most if not all students came from the Freshmen Center.

“Here in Morton I would say it’s pretty easy meeting people. We all practically grew up together from the moment we stepped into Unity. Even if we didn’t talk to each other, we still knew of each other since we all went to the same schools, but I can agree with how it would get harder after high school since we’re all leaving the one place that brought us together,” senior Nailea Chavez said.

“I like to make time in class for students to work in groups and get to know their peers. This is a really essential part of building a classroom space where everyone feels comfortable. When we learn more about who we are around we can be more knowledgeable and more respectful towards those around us, ultimately creating an environment that is more welcoming for people to share,” civics teacher Ms. Gutheim said.

This supports the idea that here in Morton East, students have a strong bond amongst each other and that teachers encourage students to get to know each other for those who don’t talk to anyone in their classes.

“Ooo, this is an interesting question that I am not sure I have an answer for. I would say that I think girls are more willing to work in groups earlier on, while boys are more hesitant. In regards to talking and being social, I would say they are about even, just depends on the student,” civics teacher, Ms. Gutheim said.

At the end of the day, it depends on how willing the student is on putting their front foot forward and putting themselves out there to talk to unfamiliar faces and create some sort of bond.

Unfortunately, college is around the corner for most seniors and it is a completely new world once you step out of the high school bubble.

“It’s hard meeting people in college for multiple reasons, covid being one. From my experience some of my classmates have been shy, some are mean girls who are stuck up and still act like they’re the popular girls from high school with their little group, the age difference, I mean I have classmates who are in their 30’s 40’s taking my courses. Some of them are really funny and cool to hang around with, others are reserved and only focused on themselves. I find myself being the shy one because in most of my classes no one’s approachable. It’s rare you find good friends that you can have a study group with and help each other out and have a nice night out drinking cocktails “ Chamberlain nursing student Claudia Andrade said.

One College student explains the ordeal you go through when entering college and it is not pretty at times. Not to get your hopes down, but this is the college life for some.

“My classmates are very stuck up and as you get older you don’t want to surround yourself with people who are still stuck with how they were in high school, you want to be friends with people who are down to earth and are chill and true to themselves and know how to have a good time,” Chamberlain nursing student Jocelyn Flores said.

College students are alone from what Jocelyn said. It looks to be very intimidating to even find just a group to study with. It is like a completely different environment when you enter college.