The cheerleaders perform feats of flips and lifting teammates high in the air against a background of cheers. The Captains Crew members race in shark costumes under limbo poles. The result: students left the gym excited by the homecoming pep rally and ready for the upcoming homecoming dance. Both the pep rally and the dance were planned by the SCA. When it came to making choices, the students had all the power. SCA sponsors Ryan Dearmen and Lydia Pellow were hands off, being more of a supportive role to the students. Planning started last year in spring after the seniors left for Outreach. When it came to picking themes, the SCA brainstormed some ideas, but they left it to the student body to vote for one to be decided. “SCA definitely has some themes we love,but it’s all up to the student body because we want them to have the most fun they can possibly have,” senior and SCA president Taylor Keys said.
SCA’s biggest goal was getting students to attend the dance itself while also getting more people to participate in spirit week. “So it wasn’t too specific and niche,” junior and media specialist Zach Johansen said, noting that dress-up days were chosen to make it easier for students to dress up. “We thought that student participation was really great.”
With the help of principal Michelle Luttrell and by doing bake sales in downtown Leesburg and having a cookie fundraiser, SCA insured that the homecoming dance was free for students, leading to an increase in people going. “We definitely got higher attendance and I saw a lot more people excited leading up to the dance,” senior and vice-president Clara Jolly said. Around 500 students attended this year’s homecoming.
While homecoming is a common milestone across American schools, students in past years have not seen it as an integral part of the high school experience, and participation was lower in past years. “I think it’s definitely important and I think in previous years I have missed out,”sophomore and spirit director Emilia Fish said. “So I think this year we really helped a lot of people break out of their shells and really get into the homecoming spirit.”
After everything is said and done, the homecoming dance ended up being a hit with students this year and that’s due to the SCA’s work, but their work continued as soon as homecoming was over, with SCA beginning planning for their next event, the trunk or treat scheduled for October 29. “We feel relieved, but also excited to continue to fundraise and plan future events and make this the best year yet,” Keys said.
