Jan 1, 2015 5 min read

As I prepare our annual teen-written New Year’s column, I am touched by the wisdom and dedication of our young people. I’m grateful for the time I spent with teens in 2014 and look forward to learning from them in 2015. I send wishes for joy, health and love to all. Happy New Year!

Our peer educators responded to the questions: 1. What is your personal 2015 New Year’s resolution? 2. What do you wish for our country in 2015?

Jamie Barton: My personal resolution is to graduate and, hopefully, get into my dream school where I can be creative every day.

Spencer Bryner: My New Year’s resolution would be to get my act together, go to school, get a job that I can use to fund my schooling and find a place in the world for who I am.

Siarra Demichele: My New Year’s resolution is to become more focused as a student. I want to try to become the person I would fall in love with ideally. I want to talk to acquaintances so they become friends. I want to brighten someone’s day when they’re not feeling well. If someone isn’t being treated fairly, I’d like to be the person to speak up. I’d also like to stop eating so much chocolate. Now, my resolution for society would be to stop trying to fight fire with fire. Put the weapons down and talk about the problems instead, then hug.

Sasha Edwards: My New Year’s resolution is to be more responsible with my time and more conscientious in how I treat others. I want to start being more punctual and mindful of my promises and commitments, whether they involve school and extracurricular activities or social/family matters. I want to be more respectful of people’s boundaries and beliefs. Also, I want to eat more fruits and vegetables.

Koron N. Harris: My New Year’s resolution is to make myself more open to different opinions and lifestyles because it is important to be accepting of everyone.

Alicia Marine: For my New Year’s resolution, I plan to start attempting more in school for higher grades and to fill more space around me with positivity. I wish for my country to spread more equality, equity and rights.

Toni Maurer: Well, my personal resolution is really just to fix myself. I want to ignore who I was before, who I was yesterday, and I want to become someone brand new. I want to be healthy and clean, and I want to give myself a name to be proud of. I want to be my own inspiration, as well as inspiration for others. As a resolution for our society, what can anyone really wish for? Of course we want things to change. We want equality and we want it now, but here’s the truth, we’re not getting it! Why? Because society, despite the circumstances, has yet to see the problems within itself. In 2015, society should at least see the problems happening. Once the problems are visible, change will become clear.

Angus Pinkerton: My New Year’s resolution is to be happy and spread that joy to other people.

Ellaria Roth: My personal resolution is to survive senior year and make it to college sane and in one piece. Other than that, I want the country to come to terms with the fact a person is a person, regardless of any factor you can derive to pass judgment on them.

DeVon Westside: My resolution is to be a better leader and more self-motivated in the classroom to obtain my future goals. In our country, I wish for both sides to set down our arms in this racial war going on with cops and African-American folks. A onetime freak thing turns the whole country to a police vs. African-American society war/struggle, and it’s really not worth it. We are in 2015. This should not be an issue right now.

Maci Joelle Ward: My New Year’s resolution is to strive for the best for myself and others. Also, in 2015, I wish our country could come together as one; we need to understand if we do not all work together to further our country, it can only get worse.

Finally, from a young person who wishes to remain anonymous: I wish I could help, but I stopped setting resolutions when I realized I’d never accomplish them (because I don’t – setting them stresses me out, or I just forget them).