High school can be tough, especially if you鈥檙e new to town.
Just ask Abbie Carlos who moved to Jasper from the Philippines with her family in 2014.
Not only did she have to adjust to a new culture and language, she also had to enroll in a new high school halfway through her Grade 11 year.
鈥淚t was definitely a change for me, but the welcoming attitude of the people here was what really helped me. The teachers, the staff, the students鈥攅veryone was so nice to me that it made it really easy to start fitting in,鈥� said Carlos, who graduated from Jasper Junior/Senior High School in June.
鈥淚 feel very lucky that we were able to move to Jasper.鈥�
For most people simply adjusting to a new way of life would be hard enough, but Carlos wanted more. Earlier this month her hard work paid off, when she found out that she had snagged the Governor General鈥檚 Award for graduating at the top of her class.
While Carlos said she doesn鈥檛 remember her exact grade point average, she believes it was somewhere in the high 90s.
JJSHS principal, Mark Crozier presented Carlos with the award Nov. 9, while she was home during her university鈥檚 reading week.
鈥淎bbie was a dedicated, hardworking student. I am sure she will go on to achieve many great things in her life,鈥� Crozier said. 鈥淭he fact that English is her second language and she still achieved the highest overall average in Grade 11 and 12聽is incredible.鈥�
Carlos said the award was unexpected.
鈥淚 only did a year and a half in Jasper so I was really surprised that I received that award, but I鈥檓 really happy about it,鈥� said Carlos, adding that she鈥檚 always taken school seriously, spending most of her nights studying. 鈥淲hen I moved here I really wanted to continue doing well at school, but I don鈥檛 think I would have done so well if I had of transferred anywhere else.鈥�
In September, Carlos swapped her Jasper bedroom for a dorm room at the University of Alberta, where she is studying physiology.
鈥淯niversity is a lot harder than high school, which makes me wish I had of had more fun in high school, but everything is good and fun鈥攋ust a bit more stressful,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 love all the labs you get to do here. I鈥檝e always liked hands on activities where I can apply all the concepts I鈥檝e learned, but they also come with a lot more homework.鈥�
In the future, Carlos hopes to become a doctor鈥攁 dream she鈥檚 had since she was little.
鈥淚 always thought that I couldn鈥檛 be a doctor unless I put in a lot of hard work so I guess that鈥檚 what always motivated me,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 think if you want to reach your goals in life then you have to study and work hard.
鈥淣othing comes easy in life.鈥�
Kayla Byrne
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