The March spirit week this year brought with it a positive energy for many students, but there was evidently a lack of participation among each class. Days like “college and career day” and “Adam Sandler day,” arguably the most manageable of the spirit week themes, never had more than 25% participation for any class. “Anything but a backpack day,” where students usually go all out, only had 6% participation among the freshmen and the sophomores, 7% among the juniors, and 10% among the seniors. The seniors’ participation throughout the week was very low compared to previous years, but that is most likely due to seniors leaving during advisory for their senior release, which happens to overlap with when the counting takes place. It might be a good idea to consider tallying the students who dressed up during either first or second period so that the seniors can accurately be counted. 

As for the Glow Ball at the end of the week, there were very few students who actually bought tickets compared to the Homecoming Dance and even the Glow Ball last year. Once people started to make up their minds that the dance would be boring and not worth their time, that negativity spread, and more and more students decided that because no one else seemed to be going, they wouldn’t either. This created an unfortunate self fulfilling prophecy, but that didn’t stop the few who did show up from enjoying themselves. Throughout the night, there were numerous dance circles and mosh pits, and students proved that you don’t need a big crowd to have a good time.

The point of spirit week is to strengthen the school community and bring some excitement into students’ lives, but when very few actually make the effort to engage with the themes and after school activities, it has the opposite effect. Instead of embracing the school’s efforts to bring some fun into our everyday lives, many complained that the themes were “lame” and “stupid.” It’s understandable that themes like “anything but a backpack day” and “neon day” might be difficult for some students to pull together. However, earlier in the year, everyone could vote for or suggest themes they liked in a form sent to the entire student body. 

It isn’t fair to complain when there was an opportunity to share our ideas. We should appreciate efforts that make KHS’s environment more fun and inviting for everyone. Go to the dances. Dress up with the spirit week themes. Make memories.