'Undercover High' Season 1 Finale 'Undercover No More' Recap: The Seven's Verdict [SPOILERS]

The participants of “Undercover High” has heard the last rings of the school bell. Jorge, Lina, Shane, Nikki, Erin, and Gloria are graduating from Highland Park with the other students, but they’re just walking down a different stage. And instead of wearing a toga, they’re stripping down the armor of concealment that they’ve had to bear for the past semester. The future of Highland Park High School is their diploma.
But before they can toss their caps into the air, they must go through the hardest challenge of the program. In the season 1 finale episode, titled “Undercover No More,” the participants must give the students of Highland Park the truth. They must stand in front of their close friends and the whole student body as full-grown adults even if it might mean saying goodbye.

Truth and Goodbyes

When the truth is at the forefront of a possible goodbye to a dear friend, it’s not so simple anymore. Each of the participants worried that their friends might feel betrayed when they find out. Erin was especially worried because she knew the burden Michelle was still carrying on her shoulders.
Erin started her confession by saying that she was 25. Michelle refused to believe it. But the producer told her it was true. Michelle’s face was the literal visual of the word mind blown. The whole time, she never lost the look of disbelief on her face. She took the news pretty well. In mind blown trance, Michelle mumbled, “I just spent hella time with a 25-year-old that I thought was 18 that I thought went to my school. That’s crazy. That’s cool… But crazy.”
Michelle teared up talking about the time she lost her best friend, Kianna. She said that Kianna always pushed her to do what was good for her. Then Michelle met Erin, who stuck with her through the mess and continued to motivate her like how Kianna did. Michelle’s sincere gratitude poured out in one single statement as she hugged Erin. “I’m so glad you didn’t let me drop out.”
Jorge, on the other hand, was preparing for two one on one confessions. The first one was with Alijah. She was shocked upon knowing that Jorge was 24 but, she was thankful for his honesty. That moment boiled down to the one unspoken question for the participants: Was it all just an act? Jorge assured Alijah that there was not a trace of pretense in everything he did or said to her. Jorge explained what drove him in this program. He was proud of Alijah’s change, and Jorge hoped to have inspired other people to be comfortable with themselves too. Alijah’s voice broke when she told him, “It just sounds like a goodbye.” As Jorge’s confession broke Alijah’s heart, her tears broke Jorge’s.
Lina was just as worried as her brother. The tears were already in her voice as she started telling Vanessa that she was with “Undercover High.” The realization that came with Lina admitting that she was 22 years old broke loose the tears in Vanessa’s eyes. Through her tears, Lina told Vanessa how she genuinely appreciated her as a friend. At that moment, Vanessa realized that Lina had already done so much for her. “You telling me no, you have to go to college. You were on me about it. It changed a lot.” she told Lina. Even though Vanessa was hurt by the thought of losing her best friend, Lina said to her that nothing changes. Wherever they go, their great friendship would remain.
Nikki’s special person (or people), on the other hand, was everyone in the girls club she formed. Nikki told them all the same information about herself that she’s been saying to everyone the whole sem. The only thing that changed was her age, which caused some jaw-dropping from the group. Nikki was relieved to see quite a warm reception to her confession. When she asked them if they’re going to continue the club next year, everyone answered with an enthusiastic yes. Mrs. Pryor, the club’s adviser, told Nikki that she was impressed and inspired by her to continue the club. “It’s a very bittersweet moment because there’s a lot more than I could keep doing. And I am sad to leave them. They have become family to me.” Nikki said.
Shane seemed to be the only one of the participants whose excitement overcame his nervousness. He almost couldn’t contain his glee as he sat across Haley. It might’ve been the reason why Haley already guessed even before Shane could get a complete sentence of his confession out. Through her tears, Haley was laughing and expressing her disbelief. “You just made this like the most memorable year ever,” Haley told Shane. “I couldn’t have asked for a better friend.”
Daniel paid Tone a home visit. When he told Tone that he was 23 years old, Tone’s eyebrows rose to his hairline. “Now that I look at you, your voice sounds deeper. I don’t know. It’s just different,” he laughed. Tone’s mom, Victoria, also took a moment to process the information. Daniel admitted that he was the one who talked to Dr. Anderson. He said that he couldn’t let Tone’s potential go to waste. Daniel didn’t want one mistake to be the end of his life, and Tone and Victoria deeply appreciated it. “I appreciate everything especially talking to Dr. Anderson and now just being a cool grown friend,” Tone said, leading them all to laughter.
On the other hand, Jorge worried about his talk with D’Andrei. He said that he helped D’Andrei become more comfortable with himself. But because of his worry that D’Andrei might think that everything was just an act, Jorge wasn’t feeling himself. Jorge looked like he was bracing himself for an onslaught when he told D’Andrei that he was part of the program. But, D’Andrei took it lightly. “Nothing changes with how I feel about you all too,” he told Jorge. “Like I’ve told you. You were the first person I’ve ever really talked about to about my problems. It allowed me to change.” D’Andrei added that if Jorge and Lina didn’t go there, he wouldn’t be who he was now.
Jorge was relieved that D’Andrei understood his reasons and that he knew the friendship was real. “Sometimes, all you need is a listening ear,” Jorge said. D’Andrei readily agreed. He said that it’s all he ever wanted. And if that was the case, then everybody must’ve wanted it too at some point in their life. For D’Andrei, that was the best way to end his senior year. He was finally confident in who he was.
Lastly, there’s Gloria. Unlike the others, however, she didn’t get a chance to tell Nae herself that she was a participant.  Nae didn’t go to their supposed meeting. Gloria felt that Nae already had a strong hunch about the truth. Gloria said that Nae might be afraid that if the camera crew leaves, she’ll leave as well. Gloria noticed Nae’s change in behavior every time Gloria mentions anything remotely close to the camera crew. The producer asked Gloria if she thought Nae was upset. Gloria could only answer with a nervous and worried “I don’t know.”

The Verdict

The seven participants finally met each other to relay what they’ve learned to the school administration. Daniel and Jorge highlighted problems such as students barely knowing their rights and students having difficulty speaking up. Jorge found that most of the students have a fear of what their peers might think of them. Daniel observed that most students don’t’ exactly know the law. Thus, they can’t adequately defend themselves against possible prejudice and such.
The women plus Shane spoke for the issues of harassment, bullying and the lack of a system that students can trust to listen to their burdens. Cyberbullying is one of the leading points the administration questioned the participants in. Lina shared her haunting experience in the first week in the school. She was the subject of a group chat where students from other schools were taking bets on raping her. Erin also talked about the anti-bullying group that she was active. One of the things that their group discovered is that the school does have a strict anti-bullying law. It just needed to be more well-known and implemented.
Gloria suggested a trauma class where the students are free to talk about the things that are troubling them. “Trauma is something that I think unites the student body at Highland Park.” Shane agreed. He thinks that students are looking for a stable and trustworthy system where they can be heard. Gloria recognized that talking about these issues more often would put them out of the taboo for the students.
Dr. New said that she wanted to know if students lived in an alternate universe. The participant’s input has opened her eyes to the current situation of teenagers nowadays. “Teenagers don’t snitch on other teenagers. Teenagers don’t tell adults what other teenagers are saying and doing,” Gloria said. “But, when they are willing to step up and share, then we can make en route, so I think as this goes on. Hopefully, we can make the difference.”

The Judgment

The much awaited day has come for everyone. Many students dropped their jaws at least five times as Dr. New called out the participants. Most of the students were still caught up in disbelief by the time the last participant was called. But in the end, the seven participants in “Undercover High” were fully embraced by the students. There was a collective joy past the initial shock. The participant’s worries were blown away by the amount of support that the students showered on the whole situation. As Lina said, it made them feel part of the HP family.
Graduation day came, and it was Lina, Jorge, Nikki, Shane, Erin and Gloria now showing their support for the students of Highland Park. D’Andrei had the honor to deliver a heartwarming speech. In it, he said, “Here in HP, I gained something that I don’t think I would’ve gained from other high schools. I gained a second family. They taught me how to truly love myself and be proud and…We have to be greater than what we suffered. No matter how blurry it gets, you keep your eyes on that one dream, that biggest dream you have cause I promise you, you will achieve that.”
The participants have all realized that high school today was very different from what they’ve known. But as they watch the seniors walk the stage and get their diplomas, all they could hope for is that they do as D’Andre said.
Antonio is now performing community service for jail time. He will continue to help students at Highland Park by leading the “Know Your Rights” program while he’s in college. Michelle is enrolled in a phlebotomy certification course. She has decided to become a nurse. D’Andre has received a full scholarship at Pittsburg State University where he is currently taking secondary education. He plans to go back to Highland Park in the future as one of its educators. Nae transferred schools but is still on track to graduate. Haley is still a senior at Highland Park, but she is already applying to colleges to study Criminal Forensics.
The school administration of Highland Park was true to their word. They’ve used all the information they’ve gathered from the program to create programs and groups for the betterment of the students. A student equity council has been formed. Its task is to examine trauma, disparities and achievement gaps in the students. They widened the horizons of their health curriculum. And they’ve also created training workshops for the faculty members. They will now be trained to address issues such as cyberbullying, sexting and sexual harassment.
Dr. Anderson couldn’t have put it in better words when she said, “What is high school really like? I suspect that we’re probably barely scratched the surface.” High school is a stage of many people’s lives that never stay constant. Sometimes, people aren’t even aware of what their high school was genuinely like.