For this school year, Student Council, with the support of the administration team, pushed at the start of the year to be even more contentious in the initial planning and prepping for pep rallies to encourage student participation in order to create a strong sense of Muskie pride.
In the past, one of the biggest challenges was just scheduling. By utilizing the everyday Muskie Time schedule being offered this year, attendance jumped significantly since the pep rally was offered during an already existing and consistent timeframe. Whereas last year, pep rallies either had to run an alternative schedule or be set at the end of the day.
“Because we had it at the end of the day, some students felt like it was the end of their academic day, so they left,” shared Mr. Werling, one of MHS’s Assistant Principals. “This time, we had almost a full gym. So much we almost had to open up other pieces of the gym.”
The second major change came in the form of strategic seating. Once in the gym, students were assigned to seating areas in the bleachers based on grade level. With seniors and juniors in the front bleacher, and sophomores and freshmen in the upper bleachers. This arrangement gave some choice in where students could sit, but still some strategic organization to the crowded area. Teachers also sat with grade levels that they commonly teach to add visibility for supervision and general support.
“It was more controlled and organized,” shared Skylar Peterson, 12. “There were no people complaining, ‘Oh, well, I’m a senior, so I should be in the front’.
The approach helped with the logistics, moving nearly 1400 students into and out of the gym, which can quickly become chaotic and backlog of traffic, but this year that transition was smoother.
“People got back to class on time. In previous
years, it used to be a big deal (seating),” said Liberty Smiley, 12. “But it wasn’t for this pep rally.”
The game and the activities were still a staple of the pep rally.
“We really wanted to just get m
ore people involved,” said Student Council member Aliyah Kirby, 10. “We want to keep doing a lot of games, because that seems to get people more engaged.”
For many students, the structure did pay off.
“It was definitely better. A lot more people were cheering, and they were a lot more active than others,” said Benjamin Mireles, 12.
Faculty members also praised the change.
“It was decided that teachers had to sit with their classes [or common grade level], so I think that helped,” shared Connie Keitel, Librarian Assistant.
Not everyone noticed the shift, though. Junior Darlyn Martinez felt it was fairly similar to past years, especially with the games. But noted that it wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.
“Pep rallies are great. They’re fun to watch. It’s something that I kind of enjoy.”
Pep rallies’ primary purpose is to bring the school together through spirit and energy, but there is still the informative aspect that is beneficial to students.
“What I enjoyed was when they were saying the spirit days where you could see how to plan the outfits,” said Brihanys Vazquez Perez, 11.
“Pep rallies, though, are what you make out of it. Everyone who is actually doing things to be involved at the pep rally does end up having fun,” said Alyah.
Student Council is already planning ahead and hoping to build off the success of last pep rally, which, according to Mr. Werling, was “the best one yet.”
