Senior Spotlight: Onyi U. — NorthStar Navigator

By Ellie B.

NSA is home to many amazing seniors. These students have put in a tremendous amount of effort and are preparing to enter a new phase of their lives. As they reflect over the past years, the things they have accomplished, the lessons they have learned, and the people they have met, they can take all of these things and look forward to turning over a new page in life. Onyi U. is a prime example of one of these seniors.

Onyi U. is an editor here at the Navigator. Her work makes sure our articles are intelligible and grammatically correct. However, that is not the only way she’s involved at NorthStar. Onyi is also a co-president of the Creative Writing Club, and she has been a member since ninth grade. In an interview, she reflected on her time in the club saying that “this has really given me an opportunity to get into the NSA community.” Her passion for writing is not limited to NSA activities though– Onyi is also a published author. “This year, I got the opportunity to publish a book, The Journey. It’s a collection of Christian poems that I have been writing all year. It was exciting, not only to see my book in print, but also to host a book-signing event where some of my friends could check it out!”

Onyi has been at NSA for five years, since she was in eighth grade. She came to NorthStar because of “its robust courses that offered more challenging work than my local homeschool co-op did.” Her favorite part of NSA has been the teachers, and she mentioned several specifically, “Dr. Sundermeyer (English), Mrs. LeGrande (History), Mrs. Fouts (Math), Mrs. Nolin (Science), and of course Mrs. Meyer from the Navigator class!” Onyi mentioned that she appreciates “their dedication and hard work. The teachers make all the difference, and I am happy the NSA offers a chance to meet so many fun ones!” Some of her interests outside of school include books and dogs, specifically golden retrievers. Her plans for after high school consist of attending college to study English, and she is considering teaching literature after college.

Onyi offered advice to younger NSA students saying that “My biggest piece of advice would be: keep things in perspective. When you’re tempted to procrastinate, don’t think about your present feelings—consider future regrets. Do you really want to give up summer break because of bad time management? Probably not! In a similar way, remember your eternal perspective. Almost every time I look at the news, I’m always reminded that this life is so short compared to eternity. I would definitely tell students that it is never too early to prepare your soul to meet Jesus. I believe Paul calls it ‘redeeming the time.’ Make every moment count, not just in school, but in life.”

Columns: 👤NSA People, 🗞️Staff Stories

Ellie B. lives in Virginia, USA with her parents, brother, and dogs. This is her fourth year at NSA, and her second year at the Navigator. She has a passion for ballet and has plans to pursue it professionally in the future. Ellie also enjoys reading in her free time.