During the school months, Missouri gets some harsh weather. From snowstorms to tornadoes, informing students on the weather can play a big part in avoiding various catastrophes. Luckily, senior William Hicks has been posting forecast reports throughout our school for the past four years. 

   Hicks was interested in weather long before high school, and before he even knew what a meteorologist was.

   “I got into weather back when I was 10 because I would see a bunch of videos on YouTube about tornadoes, and how destructive and violent they are. Over time, I began following and studying weather forecasts regularly and learning how meteorologists predict the weather,” Hicks said.

   His interests in following the forecasts have led him into a career path. Hicks aspires to do something that broadcasts his knowledge to the public one day. 

   “I have the passion of being a meteorologist after high school. I’m planning on studying media production for broadcasting on TV at Ozarks Technical Community College for two years, transferring to the University of Missouri for two years to study Atmospheric Science,” Hicks said.  

   Hicks’ peers say he is a rule-following, kind, hard working, and committed student. He has been helping students for years, even when they have never asked. 

   “I try to help students stay informed by posting weather forecasts around the school once a week and including a bunch of information such as: temperature changes, storms that might be coming, or any severe weather risks. My goal is to make the weather easy for students to understand so they can be prepared for the week in case they don’t have the opportunity to check the forecast,” Hicks said. 

   With Hicks notifying students every week, he has to get his information from somewhere. Since he is still a high school student, it is difficult for him to get the forecast information himself, so he uses two main sites to get his weather predictions.

   “I get most of my information from The National Weather Service, AccuWeather, and trusted weather data. I check the forecast, and all the information on AccuWeather and The Local National Weather Service in Springfield to make sure it is all accurate before I share it with the school,” Hicks said.

   With the data from his weather sources, Hicks posts his forecasts on the hall walls of both floors. He has designated times and dates in the week for his posts, and if there are any significant changes in the forecast throughout the week he will update these forecasts.

   “I usually post the forecasts once a week on Monday so students know what the weather will be like during the upcoming days. If there’s a chance for severe weather following the days of the week, or something important is happening, then I might update the forecast more often so everyone stays informed,” Hicks said. 

   From severe snow storms in the winter and possible high winds in the spring, Hicks is always up to date and willing to help students so that they stay safe.

   Whether you pay attention to his posts or not, you have definitely seen them and wondered who the man behind the forecasts was. Hicks doesn’t ask for students to acknowledge him. He doesn’t put his name on them, and he doesn’t push them into students’ faces who don’t care. He just wants to assist the students who may not have a way to check the weather.

   “Helping students is something that I pride myself on. I could see my future self working in Meteorology and possibly forecasting the weather to warn people of severe weather,” Hicks said.