Students miss school for various reasons—injuries, competitions, illnesses or simply the packed schedules that accompany commitments. But regardless of the scenario, the impact on academic and social life is often the same: stress, scrambling and long days spent trying to catch up.
Sophomore Nicholas Petrikas knows these feelings well. After receiving a concussion during offseason baseball practice and bursting a blood vessel in his eye, he missed classes on Thursday and Friday, spent the weekend unable to work and then missed the first four classes on Monday.
Even after returning, he couldn’t take assessments for more than a week and spent two days unable to do anything except sit in class without fully participating.
“I was most worried about the tests, because it was during a week where I had a ton of tests and quizzes back to back,” Petrikas said. “The teachers did a great job of catching me up on my work. Also, because it was a minor injury, I was able to do most of my homework pretty quickly.”
The sudden absences also meant rearranging assessments and frequent check-ins with teachers. Luckily, some teachers offered flexibility, giving him space to recover without falling irreversibly behind.
Yet, even with support, Petrikas believes the responsibility ultimately rested on him. After missing significant class time, he said the recovery process relies less on circumstance and more on effort.
For some students, missing school isn’t a one-time ordeal; it’s a routine part of their extracurricular life. Sophomore Elijah Kim, a competitive fencer, regularly travels across the country for tournaments that keep him out of school multiple times a month.
“Fencing competitions take place about one or two times a month, with most of my absences taking place on Fridays and Mondays,” Kim said. “During these absences, I often have to find ways to manage my time between fencing and school, usually doing my schoolwork on the plane.”
While he stays ahead as best he can, long weekends away can still create pressure.
“The hardest part about missing school is not necessarily just doing the homework, class notes, and tests,” Kim said. “The most difficult part is balancing the focus needed to compete at a high level with the concentration needed to complete schoolwork thoroughly and thoughtfully.”
Even with the stress, Kim said his teachers make the process manageable.
“While it is somewhat stressful to get all the things I missed made up in time, my teachers have all been very understanding, and I feel extremely blessed to have them,” Kim said.
But constant travel doesn’t just affect academics: it can also pull students away from the social rhythms of school life. For Kim, constantly missing out on social events is not ideal, yet he deems it a “necessary sacrifice” — one with a clear purpose.
“The trade-off is definitely worth it,” Kim said. “I fence not only for the love of the sport, but also for my future. Many high-ranking colleges have fencing teams and recruit one or two fencers to their team every year. By competing, I am working towards college admission.”
