The Senior Spotlight is Muhammed Abu Shakh who said that his senior year feels very different from all of his past years in high school. He said that this year, as he winds down and prepares for his future, puts more pressure on him. That means that this year has been harder than all the rest, but he’s not nervous about graduation. He’s fully prepared for it.

The other years were good, but one of Abu Shakh’s favorite memories was in his sophomore year when he was on the football team. The beginning of the season was great and, for a while, they had no losses on their record.

That was a great year, but Abu Shakh said that his junior year definitely had to be his favorite. That was the year he was ranked #1 on the football team for his position as defense and linebacker. He was extremely proud of himself and he felt very accomplished. Abu Shakh said that he feels he’s made the most of his high school experience so far, he’s done everything that he’s wanted to do. His plans after high school is to go to Wisconsin to play football at a college there but then to return to California to play for UCLA. While football is an important part of his college goals, he isn’t limiting himself. He said that he would like to major in engineering or nursing, putting himself in a great position for a great career.

The Armijo football program is one thing Abu Shakh will be sorry to leave behind. “They’re all just my brothers and friends,” he said. “I’m just so close with all of them.” He would have taken things more seriously in his freshman year, though, if he had been aware that his future goals would feature college sports. He offered this advice to future freshmen, as well as others at Armijo who are looking to succeed: “Don’t mess around. Don’t hang out with people that are going to slow you down.”