Petersburg High School senior Anjellica Davis celebrated a special rite of passage two weeks ago. During a whirlwind year that includes graduation, prom and other important high school events, Davis also had her debutante celebrations.
“(Debutante is) a group of young ladies who are basically coming out into society and learning how to keep class and become a lady and learning how to be elegant,” Davis said.
To be ready for her debutante ball, Davis began preparing in October. She participated in workshops with other girls where they learned about relationships, financial aid for college and things like how to apply makeup.
“It’s really nice because you really do … learn how to be elegant and act like a lady and learn more about yourself and interact with girls,” Davis said.
Now that her debutante ball is done, Davis can switch her focus back to school, where she is the manager for the boy’s basketball team and the school’s softball team and is president of Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) and Future Career Community Leaders of America (FCCLA). She’s also a member of the Key Club and the One Club.
It’s a tough schedule to manage, especially when she still had to prepare for debutante, but Davis said she’s stayed focused. “I just have to learn how to keep my time and my schedule, I just have to keep managing my time and my due dates,” she said.
Davis said her favorite activity is managing the boy’s basketball team, a position she’s held since 8th grade. Her 8th grade English teacher asked her if she wanted to help with the high school basketball team and even though she wasn’t sure what would come of it, she decided to do it. “I didn’t really know about it, but I really, really liked it,” Davis said. “I just like managing.”
Davis said one of her favorite things about managing the team is the opportunity to travel. “It’s really a fun experience to travel to different schools … and watch games and learn the ropes of sports,” she said.
Davis is considering attending James Madison University to study for a pre-med degree with a minor in sports medicine.
“I love basketball, but my heart lies with being a neonatologist,” she wrote in an application essay.
She’s still deciding between JMU and Norfolk State University for college. She does know she wants to pursue a biology degree to ultimately become a pediatric medical professional, if her plans for JMU don’t pan out.
“I want to go into pediatrics because I love working with children and I like making people feel better,” she said. Davis said some of her family members are nurses, but none are pediatric nurses — although she does know the importance of pediatric specialists.
Her 14-year-old cousin was born premature and she wrote in an application essay that she hoped the doctors who take care of him would be proud to see him thriving.
“That is how I want to feel, proud, proud of all the babies with health issues become successful,” she wrote. “I want them to make me proud and show that they can do anything.”
