As day two of homecoming week draws to a close, cliques ran rampant across much of the school. Freshman preps, sophomore Goths, junior hippies, and senior nerds went about their classes as usual while enjoying the variety of costumes around them.
“I had a lot of pieces already and went to Goodwill to get a few things that looked Goth and put it together,” said sophomore Mariella Schmidt. “A lot of people did not recognize me.”
Even teachers decided to get in on the fun. They were instructed to dress as they did back when they were in high school.
“I was a band geek,” said Spanish teacher Hope Maurer. She wore her green sweater, suspenders and khaki pants proudly all the while holding her flute.
Student teacher John O’Conner also took advantage of the opportunity to relive his high school days. “You could say that I was an athletic scholar,” he said, wearing a muscle shirt and glasses.
Some students were willing to think outside the box and the limits of the genres assigned to their grade. Senior Harrison Ostrenga arrived with a white tee shirt, leather jacket and greased hair. “I dressed up so I can beat up on the nerds,” he said. This creative and somewhat unorthodox example caused laughs and turned heads, further proving the extent at which students would go to embrace school spirit.
The costumes of the students did more than just provide opportunities for a joke; they also created an appropriate atmosphere in classes that were dominated by a particular grade.
“I felt like I was teaching at a funeral,” said social studies teacher Chris Lazarski in regards to his fifth hour Global Studies class. “They were all wearing black lipstick…it was a little disturbing.”
Costumes and silliness aside, it was ultimately the atmosphere that caught the attention of administration.
“I’ve been loving it,” said principal Frank Calarco. “I’m amazed at how many kids and teachers have actually dressed up.”
Senior Emily Myers had additional reasons for dressing up, besides the opportunity to wear an awesome outfit. “I have spirit and pride for my school,” she said.
Ultimately though, no matter what grade a student is it, it all boils down to a sense of pride that students have for their school. This week is called ‘spirit week’ for a reason and if a student dresses up at all this week, then they are showing school spirit.