The next stop for Stacy Bell, who graduates today from Lawrence High School, will be her native Tuscaloosa, Ala., where she will attend the University of Alabama to study biology.

It was a case of beaten stage fright this spring that signified Stacy Bell’s Lawrence High School career.

“Just being out there with all your friends and seeing your friends in the crowd, it helped,” said Bell, who will graduate at Sunday’s 4 p.m. LHS ceremony at Allen Fieldhouse.

She performed several acts as part of Showtime, which is Lawrence High’s annual musical production. Choir is one of several activities she participated in during her three years at LHS.

“She really did come out of her shell this year,” said Cathy Crispino, the LHS choir director.

Bell is not an extremely quiet person, just a little shy. And she’s had to make adjustments throughout her school career in Lawrence to find her niche.

Her family moved here from Tuscaloosa, Ala., before she started seventh grade when her father, Stuart Bell, was named dean of Kansas University’s School of Engineering.

“I definitely thought it was the worst thing ever when I first came here,” she said.

Contrast was evident between the more conservative South and a university town with some liberal leanings, she said.

After three years at Southwest Junior High School, she joined her older brother, Stuart, at LHS, which made the transition easier.

“The teachers seemed more like they really liked what they were doing, and they trusted the students a little more,” she said.

Since she was 5, Bell had participated in sports. But by the end of her high school career, she didn’t play any of them competitively.

It was a combination of being too short to play basketball and a shoulder injury that wrecked her softball pitching career.

But, Bell found other activities to stay involved. The list is long: a cappella choir and chorale, Fellowship of Christian Athletes president, National Honor Society vice president, Key club. She also works at Clinton Lake Marina and teaches Sunday school class for 3 year olds at First Southern Baptist Church.

She’s managed to do all that and balance tough classes, particularly in biology and chemistry.

“Lawrence High is a really laid-back school. I’ve just felt comfortable throughout my years here,” she said.

This fall, she will head back to Tuscaloosa where she will attend the University of Alabama to begin pre-medicine studies. Her anatomy teacher, Jo Huntsinger, said Bell was self-motivated in the class and exhibited a hunger for wanting to study medicine.

But that’s not all she brought to the table in high school.

“She’s just extremely well-rounded. She’s an active member of Lawrence High School, which I highly recommend,” Huntsinger said. “Academics are one thing, but you do need to be involved in other aspects of the school as well.”

Several things are drawing Bell back to Alabama: The Southern charm, childhood memories, a warmer climate and to be closer to her top medical school choice which is the University of Alabama-Birmingham.

But she’s also glad for years in Lawrence where she saw a different perspective, met new friends, survived a rigorous Advanced Placement course load and became part of a tight-knit LHS senior class.

“There are just things that I wouldn’t ever have learned or experienced had I not come here,” she said.

As she has been able to have a second hometown and a fondness for her high school alma mater, Bell also has advice for future graduates.

“Get as involved as you can and really work hard because it’s definitely worth it. It’s tough sometimes, but you can make it through it,” she said.