By Steve Sears

Analiese Haag had just been named Morris Knolls High School 2022 Valedictorian, and she knew her best friend – her twin sister Grace – was up next.

“We’d known our class ranks for a while,” says Analiese. ‘We knew we were up there. And my guidance counselor said that for the Valedictorian and Salutatorian they usually call them down to the office. We didn’t know when, but we thought maybe around the end of the third quarter.”

The young women were in Spanish class when Analiese got called down to the office first, was informed she was Valedictorian, and when she returned with her news, she started hitting her sister.  I said, “Grace – that was the call! That was the call!’ But they also told me, ‘We’ve never had twin sisters be Valedictorian and Salutatorian.’ And I said to Grace, ‘They’re going to call you next!’ And sure enough, the phone rang and Grace was called down.” And named Salutatorian she was.

Both Analiese and Grace were in the Morris Knolls High School International Baccalaureate program. “Morris Knolls has a great program that mainly starts junior year, and then it revs ups and gets really intense during senior year when you’re preparing for all the tests,” says Analiese, who was born three minutes before her sister. “In our program, there was only 12 of us in total, so it was a really close-knit group that we took most of our classes with. That was definitely helpful because you have that supportive community and you are close with all your teachers.” It also helped that she had a special study partner. “To achieve Valedictorian and Salutatorian, the big thing for me was just having my sister to study with. That really pushed me, because if I was doing an assignment, and I saw her doing it very well, I’d say to myself, ‘I should be doing that well, too.’ Not that I wanted to do better than her, but just looking at her, it made me excited to learn, Also, the projects weren’t a hassle, they became a fun thing to do. School was fun and that definitely helped. Studying wasn’t a task; when I did it with my sister, it was always a fun thing to do.”

Grace adds, “Studying together was a big help because you can make fun memories, and then you have memories to go along with the stuff you’re trying to learn. And we also created a lot of songs,” she says with a laugh.

“Yeah, we created a lot of songs,” says Analiese. “I don’t remember any of those anymore. Just a lot of fun, little tunes to go along with studying.” She then pauses, then adds. “Grace is my best friend. I could not imagine a life without her. We live in the same room, bounce off each other, watch movies together.  We just hang out, and every day is almost like a sleepover with your friend. I always have her. When I’m happy, I can talk to her about that, and when I’m sad, I can speak to her. With anything, I can have someone to support me or to share my emotions with, and it’s really the best thing ever.”

“It can be cool sometimes because we would be in class, and we didn’t sit next to each other in every single class,” says Grace. “For psychology, we were on the opposite sides of the room, and then we’d just sort of mouth things or do little hand motions, and people would ask, ‘What are you doing?’ We’re just ‘talking’ to each other, so that’s a cool part of it, too.”

“She has a great understanding of me,” says Analiese. “It’s just easy to communicate with her.”

The Haag twins will now head to Rutgers University in New Brunswick for Honors College, and both are seeking to find their own path and will live in separate rooms. “A slight separation,” says Analiese, who will study Environmental Policy, while Grace will major in English. “When I need to talk to someone, she (Grace) won’t be too far away. And I’m kind of excited for the change as well, but I do get a little bit of different, mixed emotions.”

“it’s good to have a new experience, and that’s all exciting,” says Grace. ‘But, like Analiese said, it is nerve wracking. I won’t have my study partner anymore. But we’ll always have each other to lean on, no matter what.”