Michael Parkey gets up at 4:30 in the morning on a typical Thursday to go to swim practice. From there he goes to school where he has a HOSA meeting at lunch and another swim practice after school. When he gets home at 6:30 he starts his homework so he can get enough sleep to do it again tomorrow.
Parkey is a sophomore who rarely has free time. While most students will join a club or two, Parkey is involved in seven as well as being a part of the Health Science Academy, an academic program for students who take extra courses that focus specifically on the health science careers.
Parkey likes being involved in the school as much as he can. He is also interested in becoming friends with people that have the same interests as him. “I enjoy doing activities in my community and getting to know other students,” Parkey says.
Parkey has always been involved in extracurricular activities. In middle school at Hellgate, he was apart of a couple different activities. “I was in WINGS. It was a club where we would go out in the community and around the school to help others. I was also in VISION where I was a teacher’s assistant for elementary teachers at Hellgate,” said Parkey.
People notice how much effort Michael puts into his relationship with school. “Michael is very hard working and dedicated when it comes to his school work and wanting to succeed,” says sophomore Kallie Godina.
With how packed Parkey’s schedule is, it can get pretty stressful. But that doesn’t seem to affect him too much. He has developed a system to manage all of the different aspects of his life. “I find good ways to manage stress and stay cool. I just kind of go with the flow and not think too much about the future,” Parkey says.
Parkey believes that engaging in these different activities will not only keep him involved in what happens at Big Sky but also help him in his life outside of school as well. “I feel like they really get me to be involved in activist ideologies and help me better understand the world around me,” Parkey says.
Parkey has plans for what he wants his life after high school to be like. He thinks that these clubs that he is taking part in will help him out. “I want to go to the University of Washington and then medical school to be a forensic pathologist,” Parkey says.