The Jacobsen Family
As the youngest sibling of four Gunn graduates, sophomore Robin Jacobsen鈥檚聽high school experience has been shaped by her predecessors. Robin Jacobsen鈥檚聽eldest sister, Nicole Jacobsen, graduated from Gunn in 2013, and Robin Jacobsen聽is currently in the middle of her sophomore year, marking a 13-year history between聽Gunn and the Jacobsen family. From this longstanding relationship comes a wealth聽of information about the school, its teachers, its technology and its approach to聽mental health, aspects of Gunn that have changed considerably over the years.
According to Robin Jacobsen鈥檚 elder brother Brandon Jacobsen, who graduated聽from Gunn in 2016, having other siblings who went to Gunn helped when it came to聽course and activity selection. 鈥淚 think one of the coolest things about having all of us聽go to Gunn was that we were able to relate and help each other out when we had the
same teachers,鈥 he said.
At the same time, the siblings were able to explore different activities. Robin Jacobsen鈥檚 elder sister Maren Jacobsen, who graduated聽in 2021, carved her own path in high school. 鈥淚 definitely got a variety of things I聽could get involved in, but I also found my own interests,鈥 she said.
Beyond advice on classes and extracurriculars, having siblings at Gunn also聽allows the Jacobsens to share experiences with one another. For example, Robin聽Jacobsen鈥檚 elder sister Camille Jacobsen, who graduated in 2019, participated in聽track her freshman year with Brandon Jacobsen. 鈥淚t was something completely out聽of her comfort zone, but I encouraged her a little to do it,鈥 Brandon Jacobsen said.聽鈥淲e ran in meets together and got to share those experiences.鈥
On the other hand, Maren Jacobsen and Robin Jacobsen both enjoyed choir.聽According to their mother Julia Jacobsen, a long-term sub for English teacher Ethan聽Halter, the sisters had fun singing together and brought joy to others during the聽pandemic. 鈥淚t was like a bright light in that time,鈥 she said. 鈥淚t was just so inspiring
that they could still be making music. It was definitely not like singing in person at聽all, but at least they were able to do something they loved.鈥
However, Camille Jacobsen found that going to the same school as her siblings聽could foster unwanted pressure. 鈥淪ometimes, I鈥檇 have some of the same teachers and聽they鈥檇 compare me to my older siblings,鈥 she said. 鈥淭hat was annoying sometimes.鈥
From a broader perspective, the Jacobsens鈥 long-term relationship with Gunn聽also provides valuable insight into cultural changes over the past decade. One major聽paradigm shift the Jacobsens have observed has been in the school鈥檚 approach to聽mental health. According to Brandon Jacobsen, this transition began to occur when聽he was an upperclassman and experienced one of the suicide contagions at Gunn,聽which included someone he knew. 鈥淭hat year, they spent a lot of resources and time聽trying to help students,鈥 he said. 鈥淚 think that period of time was when they realized聽that they needed to shift in focus to actually helping kids with mental health.鈥
This shift is evident from Robin Jacobsen鈥檚 experience at Gunn thus far. 鈥淚 think聽that Gunn鈥檚 definitely gotten better about putting people鈥檚 mental health into the聽equation,鈥 Robin Jacobsen said. 鈥淲hen my sister [Nicole Jacobsen] was going here,聽I don鈥檛 think there was any of that [mental health support].鈥
Another change in the past decade has been the usage of technology at Gunn. Maren Jacobsen,聽the second youngest of the five, cited an increase in dependence on technology in the聽past decade. 鈥淚 remember when my oldest sister was there [at Gunn], iPhones were聽just starting to become a thing,鈥 she said. 鈥淭hey weren鈥檛 using a ton of technology for聽school. Now, we did Zoom school for a whole year, and we were using our computers
for everything.鈥
Although there may have been many changes over the years, including the聽unexpected twist of the pandemic, one thing has stayed constant: the siblings鈥櫬燾onnection to each other. According to Camille Jacobsen, it鈥檚 always comforting to聽have someone familiar on campus. 鈥淚t was fun to have somebody that I could relate
to with all the stuff that was going on,鈥 she said.