‘Y-E-L-L, let us hear those seniors yell!’ The once competitive class competition allows stomping, yelling, shakers and noisemakers, but not silence. The spirit competition allows each class a chance to yell their class chant as loud as they possibly can; the loudest class wins the spirit stick. Blatantly ignoring the traditional spirit competition does not prove any point except that there is none to make.
The pep rallies provide students an opportunity to dress crazily on designated Fridays in themes such as ‘Twin Day,’ ‘Grease,’ and ‘Nerd Day.’ They also let students participate in entertaining and comical competitions in front of the student body like the reoccurring $100 half-court shot sponsored by Cary Bohn. The dance team, cheerleaders, and band showcase their talents as they support all the teams doing what they love. These special Fridays tend to offer students something to look forward to at the end of the day. They shake up the schedule, ending the week on a high note. Not participating during the class competition stomps on that high-note, eliminating team spirit and the overall energy of the school.
Sitting down or keeping quiet shows an immense amount of disrespect towards the school, teams, cheerleaders and faculty. Whether they take offense to it or not, the cheerleaders put on these pep rallies every Friday to benefit the student body. Blatantly ignoring their efforts to build school spirit shows an incredible amount of disregard towards the school. If nothing else matters, showing even a little bit of courtesy should. Respect doesn’t stop at the school song or the pledge of allegiance; it carries over to the class cheer as well.
Students believe that the senior class automatically wins the spirit stick at every pep rally no matter how loud they actually yell. As this is not true, ceasing to yell during the class cheer does not prove this. In fact, it makes very little sense. If all of the classes except the senior class yelled and the seniors still won the competition, that would be making a point.Whether or not seniority prevails during each competition, it looks bitter and resentful on everyone else to just give up. Each class will receive the opportunity to experience the seniority in time.
Arguably, students have the right to simply not participate or pay attention during the pep rallies. They can sit down in the bleachers and not engage in the spirit activites. While this may be true it’s, to simply put it, not right. Students experience only four years of high school and should be exposed to every aspect of it. Whether this means attending school functions such as football games, school dances or pep rallies, showing school spirit is part of that aspect.
‘Y-E-L-L, let us hear those seniors yell!’ The class competition brings students together through a little friendly competition in an effort to become one voice. It supports and encourages teams and fuels a sense of camaraderie among classes. Neglecting to participate does not prove a point, but merely looks childish on the part of the individual or class.
