It’s that time again. The time of year when high school seniors reach the end of their long sojourn and get to walk down an aisle to receive a piece of paper that says they never again have to walk those school halls or set foot in another high school classroom. It’s the day when the place they’ve known for the past four years becomes their alma mater and a part of their past. Students nationwide are attending graduation parties and spending some last-minute time with friends, listening to commencement addresses and buying up dorm room furnishings by the truckload. In La Jolla, there is a treasure trove of high schools filled with talented students, and they’re all experiencing the excitement of not knowing exactly what their future holds. Where they will end up and what they will become is yet to be known, but for now, they can celebrate this time as one of the biggest milestones in their young lives. Here are some of La Jolla’s high school graduating stars and their hopes for the future: Torrey Pines High: • Anna Knowles has always enjoyed math, until she developed a love for English her senior year at Torrey Pines High. She loves outdoor activities, such as lacrosse, snowboarding, hiking and wake boarding, and will attend the University of Vermont next year. She’s not sure what she’ll major in or what kind of career she’ll end up in, but she hopes to someday end up in Boston. • While in school, John Cabot’s favorite subjects were English, government and auto tech. His general interests are cars, football and other sports, and he has been the school’s starting quarterback for his entire high school career, and has been involved in baseball, basketball, lacrosse and track. Immediately following graduation, he will leave to attend college and play football for Pennsylvania State University, where he will be majoring in business management. He hopes to be drafted into the NFL after college and eventually own a car-customizing business. La Jolla High School (all valedictorians): • Ziru Liu was born in China and moved to the United States in 2002. She didn’t have a favorite subject in school, but excelled at everything. She will be attending Dartmouth College in the fall, likely majoring in biology or economics. She would like to eventually go to medical school, and enjoys reading and drawing in her spare time. • Amy Cao has lived in San Diego most of her life. She will be attending the University of California, Berkeley in the fall with a Regents’ and Chancellors’ Scholarship. Her major is undecided, but she is considering studying environmental science. Her extracurricular interests include drawing, playing badminton, dancing and reading. • Torrey Czech’s academic interests include biology, chemistry, psychology and art history. Throughout high school, he enjoyed being in the Asian Club, Fencing Club, Link Crew and serving as president of Hand Up and California Scholarship Federation. Outside of class, she spent three summers as a researcher in molecular cognition, bioengineering and biomedical science labs at UCSD and at the Human BioMolecular Research Institute, where she worked on creating antibodies that detect nerve agent damage. She also studied international relations — specifically global development and human trafficking — as an intern and editor-in-chief for WorldLink newspaper at the Institute for Peace and Justice at the University of San Diego. She will be attending UCSD as a national merit, regents and medical scholar in a combined eight-year bachelor’s/MD program with provisional acceptance into the UCSD School of Medicine. She hopes to study anthropology and communications and spend some time studying abroad. Eventually, she hopes to become a primary care or infectious disease physician and help underserved populations worldwide. La Jolla Country Day: • Junior Togiaso came to Country Day four years ago when his family was struggling financially and living in hotels. He lived for much of the last four years in the home of his football coach after his family moved to Long Beach. He graduated with an impressive resume: honors academics, musical theater and choir performance, and exceptional football and track athletics. He will attend Cornell University on a full scholarship. • Jason Kang came to La Jolla four years ago from Korea. He quickly learned English, took up the jazz saxophone and became the editor of the student newspaper. He will attend the University of Illinois in the fall.