Devin Fitzpatrick Junior Class Vice President 2022-2023
The Initial Letter-Section 1
Going into this school year I am expecting a bounce back/rebound from last year. Last year wasn't terrible but it was definitely a year of adversity for me. I met many roadblocks whether it was through leadership, academics, or my track career. I was discouraged a lot throughout last year and I was gassed out by the end of the school year. It was more of a freshman year rather than a sophomore year for me as so much didn’t happen my freshman year so I got to see many things for the first time my sophomore year. Mentally, I learned so much, developed as a person, and I believe I needed last year in order to come super strong this year. I worked hard the whole summer so starting the school year isn’t even that big of a transition for me and I am ready to make this school year one of my best. I plan/hope to have a huge role in leadership this year, maintain straight A’s throughout the school year, and take a jump in Track this season. Many people say that Junior year is the worst but I am going into it with a positive attitude and am hoping to make it one of my best. I also realized one of my issues last year was I forgot to live and that ended up holding me down as I gassed myself out way too early so I plan to make sure I still am having fun this year because it will help my overall longevity in pursuing my dreams and staying motivated. I also am much more organized and it helps me stress wise. I will have a good year this year and I am sure of that.
Part I: Favorite Quotes-Section 2
“Everything negative - pressure, challenges - is all an opportunity for me to rise.” – Kobe Bryant This quote impacts my life because it inspires me to use failure and diversity to my advantage. It motivates me by telling me that eventually, the disadvantages I experience will become advantages. It also promotes a more positive mindset and therefore a more positive life. If you look at negativity as an opportunity and with a positive mindset you will likely have a very happy life. It inspires people to use everything in life as an opportunity.
“Balance is not something you find, it’s something you create.” - Jana Kingsford This quote has a large impact on my life especially right now because I feel like I am finally achieving great balance in my life and although I still need improvement and there is always room for improvement I feel I am creating balance. I feel that I did not find this balance but created it by being more productive with myself and prioritizing the right things in life. So far Junior year has started off so much better than sophomore year and I am looking forward to a great, balanced year.
“When you know what’s important to you, making a decision is quite simple.” - Anthony Robbins This quote has an impact on me because it inspires me to always remember what my priorities are in life and to hold them high. I think it is very important that you not just prioritize but also prioritize the right things in life. Because if you are prioritizing things that really shouldn’t be important to you then you’re going down the wrong path and aren’t going to get anywhere. When those priorities are set and are in the right place in your mind, it is quite easy to make life decisions and you won’t ever feel completely lost.
Part II: Quote - Section 3
“Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance and order and rhythm and harmony.” - Thomas Merton
This quote represents me as a leader this year largely as I have learned through it that balance is essential to happiness and largely improves how well of a leader you can be. How you keep a balanced life through crazy situations and what life throws at you really will make your well being. This quote can be used by future students in this course when they are out of sorts for happiness and how to manage their lives with their involvements. A simple statement can make the biggest impact on your future by enlightening your perspective on life.
Part I: Goals-Section 4
Leadership Goals
My first goal for Leadership this year is to be as involved as I possibly can within the program. I will be signing up for many committees for all of the events that we put on and I will be stepping up as a key planner and leader in this class for our events. I also would like to be a key role model to the underclassmen by being involved and a top leader in this class.
My second goal for leadership this year is to make a large impact on the people inside and outside of the program. This year I’m going to try to reach out and positively impact the student body and my community as much as I can while maintaining a happy lifestyle. Leadership will largely guide me in this goal.
Short Term Goals
One of my short-term goals for me is to maintain straight As for this school year and my Senior year as well. I have the goal of being as academically excellent as I can be in the time I have left in high school to make my college application as good as possible so I can get into the schools I want to attend.
Another one of my short-term goals is to either qualify or come close to qualifying for the California state track and field meet this next season and after high school going to run for a D1 college.
Long Term Goals
A long-term goal of my mine is to attend a good four-year university and get a degree in economics. I then want to go into one of the career pathways I’m looking at currently and have a successful career.
Another long-term goal of mine is to build a great family and legacy. I want to be looked at as a great father, son, husband, associate, and student, among many other things. I want to leave the best impact I can on this world before I leave. I also would like to have a great wife and kids and lead them on to be successful.
Part II:Goals – Section 5
“My first goal for Leadership this year is to be as involved as I possibly can within the program. I will be signing up for many committees for all of the events that we put on and I will be stepping up as a key planner and leader in this class for our events. I also would like to be a key role model to the underclassmen by being involved and a top leader in this class.”I feel that I hit this goal very well this year as I felt my involvement in the leadership class was felt by many. I felt I largely worked to the best of my ability and always worked to better myself.
“My second goal for leadership this year is to make a large impact on the people inside and outside of the program. This year I’m going to try to reach out and positively impact the student body and my community as much as I can while maintaining a happy lifestyle. Leadership will largely guide me in this goal.” I feel l also achieved this goal very well as I did many things to become active in my community and affect others such as the walk for multicultural club. I think I can continue to pursue this goal for years to come.
“One of my short-term goals for me is to maintain straight As for this school year and my Senior year as well. I have the goal of being as academically excellent as I can be in the time I have left in high school to make my college application as good as possible so I can get into the schools I want to attend.”This goal I cannot say whether I have achieved or not until after this semester's grades are locked in but I can at least say that I am halfway there as last semester I maintained straight As. I plan to do the same for this semester and my next two semesters.
“Another one of my short-term goals is to either qualify or come close to qualifying for the California state track and field meet this next season and after high school going to run for a D1 college.” This goal I also cannot say whether I have achieved or not until the end of the track season but I will say I have altered this goal to be more realistic for myself. I have the goal of making it to master finals for track and field this season.
“A long-term goal of my mine is to attend a good four-year university and get a degree in economics. I then want to go into one of the career pathways I’m looking at currently and have a successful career.” This goal I cannot say whether I have achieved for years to come but everyday I continue to work towards this goal of obtaining a degree in economics at a good four year university.
“Another long-term goal of mine is to build a great family and legacy. I want to be looked at as a great father, son, husband, associate, and student, among many other things. I want to leave the best impact I can on this world before I leave. I also would like to have a great wife and kids and lead them on to be successful.” This goal I will not be able to achieve for many many years but as of right now I still have all intentions of building a great family and being a good father one day.
Part I: People Magazine Cover-Section 6
Part II: People Magazine Article-Section 7
Devin Fitzpatrick is a man of many dreams. From a young boy, he has always strived for large goals. Since middle school, he has aspired to get into the best college that he possibly could and that has not changed as he looks back on these aspirations as a Junior in high school. When asking Devin what his values are in life he told us that his number one value over everything else is his family. Devin states that everything he does is influenced by his family and he hopes to represent them as well as possible throughout his lifetime. Devin said he also values his friends and the relationships that he makes in life. Devin would like to make as many great memories in life as he can and live in the present and the relationships that he has made drive this love. Another large value in Devin’s life is his character development. Devin has been stressed his family his whole life how important it is to have good character and for good reason as well. Devin believes that building a good character is one of the most important things in life as it drives everything that you do. Devin prides himself in building a dedicated, compassionate, outgoing, and passionate character and wants to continue improving himself every day. Devin’s goals for his life, as we have already touched on, are large as he has always strived for a lot. In the short term, Devin has the goal of getting into a quality four-year college in which he will succeed, along with running track at the division 1 level. Behind academics, running is a very large part of Devin’s life and he truly loves to do it. When he first started it freshman year Devin immediately gained a passion for it that he had never felt before and it gave him a larger sense of who he was in life. Beginning running helped Devin begin to look for more things that made him unique and through high school, Devin has largely discovered his personality. Another goal that Devin has is to leave a legacy at Ripon High School when he leaves. As one of the first steps in building a legacy in life and making a positive impact on the world, Devin would like RHS to be greatly positively impacted by himself. Overall, through our talks with Devin, we see that he will be up to many things in life and will make a lasting impact on the world around him.
Role Model - Section 8
One of my biggest role models in life is my grandmother. My grandmother inspires me everyday by doing the things that she does, the selfless attitude in which she has and her wish to make others happy. My grandma grew up in the state of Mississippi in a time where racial segregation was large and Mississippi was the most racist state in America. My grandma and her family faced much discrimination throughout her childhood and has lived through the progression of African American’s rights in this country. My grandma is a very religious person and has always had a strong relationship with God and has wished to help spread Chrisitanity in her family by taking them to church and things of that nature. One thing I have always seen from my grandmother is that she always puts her loved ones over herself. Even with complete strangers, she will go out of her way to help them however she can. When I worked at the dealership this summer all of the workers told me that it was basically a tradition for my grandmother to come every Friday and give either peaches or donuts to all the workers at the dealership just out of the kindness of her heart. No one ever paid her to do it; she just did it. My grandmother inspires me everyday to persevere through tough situations and always try to live life with kindness.
Inner Animal - Section 9
The animal that describes my personality the best is a golden retriever I would say. I’ve been told this by many people and I can really see the resemblance. I can sometimes be on the more obnoxious side and some would say there’s been points in my life where I act like an innocent puppy which I don’t exactly like as a description but can’t win them all I guess. A golden retriever is full of lots of energy as well and are pretty happy organisms which I think would be a good description for my personality. I also care a lot about my loved ones and spend a lot of time with them which are also things that a golden retriever does. I also feel like with my curly and fluffy hair and the fact that I smile a lot makes me kind of resemble a golden retriever. A golden retriever has an unbreakable spirit and seems to always remember who they are. This is a trait that I can easily say that I have. A golden retriever also has a lot of courage and does not let too much scare itself which I can also say that I do.
Part I: The Best thing About Me - Section 10
Part II: The Impact of Sound and Words - Section 11
I have listened to this song for a long time and I’ve always had a special connection with it. I literally have a quote from the song on my letterman’s jacket. This song has a lot of focus on self-enlightenment through reflection and active work. This I can largely relate to because I can find myself to be most self-enlightened through these two aspects. The song also touches a lot on racial subjects and figures. In turn, I think about these subjects a lot, so those songs naturally called out to me.
Homecoming Activities Photo Gallery-Section 12
What I Like Best About Being a Member of Leadership – Section13
My favorite leadership memories of this school year are core camp, the night before the homecoming parade, and the warm and fuzzy night rally. Core camp overall was just a highlight of all of 2022 for me as I had so much fun. That was my first real core camp experience as it was in person at the actual camp. I just had such a great time with my friends and I remember literally any time we were in the dorms I would always be chilling in Ewan and Kade’s dorm with the kid who really didn’t want to talk. I felt so comfortable there, maybe even a little too comfortable as I realized I really didn't have a filter there. I remember just how nice it was to get out of the scorching heat of the central valley and go to perfect weather as it was cool in the mornings and just warm throughout the rest of the day but not hot. Even though I am a hot-weather guy I still loved this and I also remember how enjoyable the dance, mealtimes, and just everything about this camp was. My second favorite memory was the night before the homecoming parade. This night I remember being so much fun because although we were tired we had our whole float put together and our dream had become reality. I just remember us all taking a picture underneath the white house and being so confident in having it go out the next day. We also messed around a little after, kicking styrofoam and such. And my final favorite memory was the warm and fuzzy night rally. This rally was just really chill and I didn’t need to stress about anything. I liked the games and enjoyed doing the marshmallow contest although I lost.
A Reflection of a Peer in Leadership – Section 14
The peer that did something unselfish and kind for me is Jenna Skavdahl. As one of my best friends Jenna had done so many kinds and giving acts for me, including putting up with me in general. She’s one of the most hard-working and dependable people that I know and is often selfless. A particular act that was especially unselfish was when she helped me with my formal poster on really short notice. She helped me with the cursive writing as I could not write in cursive well and gave me input on my poster as well as just assisted me with the overall formal proposal of the poster. I am very grateful to have a friend like her in my life.
RHS Pride Photo Gallery – Section 15
What I Love to Do - Section 16
My hobby is running and more specifically running in an oval that circles a football field. The oval is red and all weather so there are no excuses when it is raining. During the fall, typically I am only running on this oval for workouts and not for races, and other times I will just be running around town. I love this hobby because I am passionate about it and it allows me to focus on myself and have time to just clear my head and think. I love my good easy runs because they are such good times to think. In the spring I am on this oval very often doing workouts and races. I love competing on this oval and going out and working to be the best I can be. When I’m not on this oval I get to relax, but when I am on I get to compete and have fun. I’ve also built great friendships through this hobby. You really do get close with people when you run 5 miles a day every day with them at your side. Overall, I love this hobby and don’t plan to stop soon.
Letter to Parents - Section 17
Dear Mom and Dad,
I just wanted to take the time to thank you, guys, for everything that you have done and continue to do for me. I am very blessed to be in such a good spot in life and I attribute so much of that to you. I always have someone to look up to, someone to support me, and someone to lead me down the right path. I appreciate teaching me proper morals and character and also everything that you do to ensure that my future is as great as it possibly can be. On top of this, mom and dad, you always put my siblings and I over everything else in your life. Whether it’s work, your personal health, anything. You are always there for us. I love you guys more than I could ever tell you enough and I will always appreciate you and do whatever I can to make you proud.
Love, Devin
Your True Legacy General Advice - Section 18
Dear Future Junior Class President, Now if you’ve done this job before you may feel much more comfortable with this job. However be wary that your junior year will throw you many other things that you’re going to have to manage your job with. Many individuals believe that junior year is the hardest academic year(I don’t), so you’re going to have to be able to balance that and manage time well so that you can still do a good job. Keep the ones that you trust close as they will be the ones who will support you when you need it and will do whatever it takes for your success. You have prom this year which honestly in my opinion, is much more relaxed than formal. Mayfield does a great job of guiding the officers through putting it on so just take it seriously and you should be fine. You also have the burden of trying to upset the seniors during homecoming. Don’t stress too hard about it but make sure you are still enjoying the moment and enjoying the homecoming experience. If you come short it’s okay because you know the value of your work. By winterfest you’re going to be dead but just remember you can do it and I wish you the best of luck! Devin Fitzpatrick
Do’s and Don’t List - Section 19
Do: Get a prom decorator months in advance Do: Keep photos of all the paperwork that you receive Do: Turn in POs early to let them process as they take a while Do: Hold meetings with Mayfield in the second semester often to plan Prom Do: Go see venue before Prom to know what to expect
Don’t: Procrastinate creating music for lip syncs Don’t: Purchase T Shirts for students who haven’t paid for them yet Don’t: Procrastinate publicity because students won’t see it if you do
The Contact List - Section 20
Jason Hern (Rustic Ranch Manager) (209) 404-9730, 30988 Garden Ave, Manteca, CA 95337
Jennifer (Prom Decorator) (209) 402-0158, 30988 Garden Ave, Manteca, CA 95337
Robert Mayfield (Junior Class Advisor) (209) 204-1943, 301 N Acacia Ave, Ripon, CA 95366
The Professional - Section 21
Two aspects that were discussed with the goal of developing a professional leader that helped me throughout my position this year were forgiveness and dealing with conflict. We largely preach and discuss forgiveness throughout this program all throughout the year and if utilized properly it is a very great skill to have in the professional atmosphere. Forgiveness encompasses being able to look at something negative someone did, more likely than not to you, and being able to move past it and not hold a grudge against the committer. You are therefore putting the committer and yourself at ease by doing this. Really forgiveness encompasses relieving whoever made the mistake from having this mistake held over them. Another aspect is dealing with conflict. I’ve had to deal with lots of conflict throughout this school year and it definitely has helped me improve as a leader as I will continue to deal with conflict throughout the rest of my life. To those who hold my position in the future I would say to always mediate conflict and not fuel the fire.
Change - Section 22
This year was a great year of growth for me as a leader. I feel I learned so much not just about being a leader but also about balancing life in general. Really the theme of this school year for me is balance. I have found that I have found ways to balance my life better than I have ever in my entire life. I’ve learned that balance is the key to happiness. Everyone said that junior year is the worst and that it would be the hardest year for me. However I’ve honestly felt that this year has been my best. Even though it may not be nearly as easy of a course load as say freshman year, the fact that I have learned to balance myself has made it that much better. I hope to continue this balance and I plan to. But back to the leadership side of things I feel I really made up for some of the mistakes that were made my sophomore year. I feel I fulfilled a lot of my potential to be a good vice president this year and worked well despite adversities. It definitely was not all sunshine and rainbows but you know what, we made it through it. I definitely felt like I learned how to deal with many different personalities in a workplace setting. I learned that being straight up is not always good. I learned that I need to bite my tongue sometimes. I learned that my mentoree(Claire) can sometimes not shut up. A time of frustration or lack of efficiency that I had was during homecoming. Although during the actual spirit events it was a time of fun and enjoyment, outside of that there were a lot of rough edges. As an officer group the junior officers were not clicking the way we can say we are now and the juniors felt about that for a lot of times we couldn’t do anything right. However we kept persevering and now we work like a well oiled machine and we are not looked down upon the way we were during homecoming. I feel that if I had to pick one skill that leadership is the most helpful for and trains you the most for is how to adapt and overall adaptability. From my freshman year we have had to adapt in this class and I doubt this will change throughout my life.
The Ideal Leader - Section 23
An ideal leader is not defined by one single trait. Everybody’s ideal leader is different. Mine is likely much different from others. But the ideal leader in my mind is one that always has the ones that they are leading in mind. One that always is keeping the ultimate goal in their mind. This leader has the goal of always leading an excellent example for others and tries to make sure that they have the most positive impact on the group they are targeting. That is really what makes an ideal leader. One whose goal is to make a positive impact. But the ideal leader must also be able to look at themselves and accept they aren’t always going to do things right. Perfection is not a possibility and that should be accepted, but not accepted with ignorance but with accountability. With whatever failure or mistake that a leader makes they must be able to hold themselves accountable and work to improve themselves. The ideal leader should always take responsibility for their actions and not only keep their best interests in mind. By doing these things I believe that a person is truly being an ideal leader.