Campus provides opportunities for returning senior

Senior Kayla Fermanian left FC near the end of her eighth grade year. Fermanian and her mom were feeling the weight of their long commute and expensive tuition. Kayla shares about her reasons for leaving.

“I left my eighth grade year because the commute and money were becoming too much for my family and I really needed a change,” Fermanian said. “I needed to see what is was like outside of the Christian community and experience a new school environment.”

Kayla moved to Central High School, for three years she enjoyed showing cattle and lambs while also attending football games with friends.

“Showing cattle and lambs was a really neat high school experience,” Fermanian said.  “Central had a great program that got kids really involved in rallies and football games with lots of school spirit.”

Although Fermanian enjoyed the unique experiences provided at Central West, she found she needed to change her environment in hopes of restoring her relationship with God.

“The environment was really hard on me,” Fermanian continued. “Knowing I couldn’t profess my love for God without being judged. I found it hard to share what I believed in or was truly passionate about.”  

Fermanian talks about the dramatic shift of attitudes in the students at Fresno Christian and Central and how peer pressure affects the character of people and schools.

“You hear about high school peer pressure all the time but having grown up in private school I really didn’t understand what it was until I went to Central,” Kayla continued. “After three years, I  realized Central wasn’t a school I wanted to be apart of anymore.”

After three years at Central just a week at Sonshine Ministries summer camp convinced Kayla to make the switch back to FCS. 

“After my week at Sonshine my mind was opened to my need for a change of heart,” Fermanian said. “I wanted to be able to show my love for Christ and live my life for Him without feeling like I had to hide.”

Initially the thought of coming back caused worry and intimidation. However the idea of sharing her story for the encouragement of others fueled her excitement for re-enrollment.

“At first I really didn’t want to come back, for fear of the questions other students might ask and what they might think about me,” Fermanian said. “I’ve been through a lot this year and through it all God has stayed by my side. Knowing I could share my story, profess my faith, and have a fresh start for senior year filled me with excitement.”

Unlike her junior high years, Fermanian plans on reaching outside of her comfort zone, involving herself more with classmates and school activities.

“I’m still fairly laid back but I’ve joined the yearbook team and appreciate getting more involved with my classes and classmates,” Fermanian said. “I’m keeping up with my schoolwork and catching up with friends I haven’t connected with in years.”

Yearbook advisor and English teacher Andrea Donaghe shares about everything she enjoys about Kayla in the short time that she’s known her; her obvious sense of humor and genuine attitude.

“It is refreshing to see that she has returned to Fresno Christian and re-integrated herself among her peers,” Donaghe said. “This is not something that is always easily accomplished. She is a talented yearbook photographer and has an eye for what makes a great photo.”

Fellow senior and FC lifer Macie Thompson reminisces her enjoyable junior high years with Kayla.

“I’ve known Kayla for six years,” Thompson said. “I remember her as friendly with everyone, she always had inside jokes with people. I wasn’t involved with her extracurricular wise but we always chatted between classes and at lunch, she was really fun to be around.”    

Fermanian is thankful for the lessons she learned and growing she accomplished during her time at Central. She looks forward to an amazing senior year filled with excitement! 

For more profiles, read Anthony Diaz values friends and family and Brad Gage serves through coaching, groundskeeping.

Anna Anderson can be reached via email.

CORRECTION: The Feather Online wants to apologize to Central High and its students for some previous quotes originally published that were not intended for publication in this article.