STUDENTS EXPLORE WHAT SPIRIT MEANS

Most high schools have homecoming celebrations in October, although football season has started long before. At homecoming, student leaders make their biggest push to rouse students' sense of pride and loyalty.

What started as a way to celebrate the football team (and a lucky student king and queen) has evolved into a weeklong party of costumes, hallway decorations and class rivalries. Of course, some schools manage to raise school spirit year-round, with regular pep rallies and constant sales of logo wear.

Y-Press members share their personal views of the spirit-raising season.

Sports and social life

I go to Carmel High School, and we have really great school spirit. Every day, you'll see a lot of people wearing clothes with the Carmel logo, and we have several spirit-based clubs, like Wild Bunch for senior girls and Big Game for senior boys. Our athletic teams are a major part of our school lives. Everyone's weekend social calendar revolves around basketball and football games. At home games, our stands are so full of Carmel fans that there are not enough seats for everyone. At away games, we get dressed up and go wherever our team is playing.

At homecoming time, we really step up our school spirit. An entire week leads up to the homecoming football game, and every day has a theme. Each student is encouraged to dress up according to that theme, and music to match the theme is played over the intercom during passing periods.

On homecoming day, the school is a sea of gold and blue. Early in the day, the entire student body -- all 3,800 of us -- pack the gym, screaming and cheering. Later, we head outside to the football stadium, where there are live bands and lots of student craft booths to check out. The best part of the day is the trike races. Every year students and teachers form four-person relay teams, dress up in ridiculous costumes, and ride tricycles around the track. It's pretty hilarious.

After the school day is over, it's time to tailgate, and then it's game time. A lot of people just stay at school until the game, which starts at 7:30 p.m. And the next day is the dance.

I really love my school. All of these events really affect our school's spirit on all days. They also show students that school spirit is not limited to athletes and cheerleaders, but is for everyone.

-- Ali Rader, 16

Student body unites

School spirit is the sense of pride you feel every time you enter a school sporting event. It is the excitement that fills school assemblies when the cheerleaders lead a chant. It causes people to throw lavish tailgate parties before every football game as well as paint their entire bodies green or gold.

School spirit unites a diverse student body in support of all of their athletes, not just the football players. It is a huge part of everyday life at Cathedral High School, but especially during homecoming week. Teachers and students prepare for homecoming weeks in advance, as all of the classes compete for the coveted Spirit Stick.

There are four categories in the Spirit Stick competition: magazine sales, service, dress-up days and hall decorations. Magazine sales start several weeks before homecoming week with an all-school assembly devoted to the "magazine man." The magazine man's entire purpose is to get students pumped up to sell magazines, and he does that in part by announcing what the prizes will be for top sellers. Cathedral students are required to sell only nine magazine subscriptions, but many students go above and beyond, selling up to $2,500 worth for the sake of school spirit.

The service aspect of the Spirit Stick competition is probably the easiest category in which to participate. All it requires is that every student donate $5 for the walk-a-thon, which is held the Friday of homecoming week, as well as find sponsors for it.

The last two categories are based on the homecoming week themes for that year, which are decided by the student council. A theme is set for each day, and students are asked to dress in outfits that reflect the theme so that their class can earn spirit points. Last comes hall decorating. Each class is assigned a hallway to decorate according to the theme of each day. Then judges, who are neither staff members nor teachers, tour the halls and determine the best one.

The week ends with the walk-a-thon and the best assembly of the year. It is at this assembly that the winner of the Spirit Stick is declared. First, the Spirit Stick is presented, always in an elaborate manner. This year, all the lights were turned off in the gym, and a spotlight was trained on the Spirit Stick, which was poised on a balcony. The Spirit Stick then slid down a string and ended up in the middle of the court. Much chanting and shouting ensued, and the winners of each categories were announced. And then the overall winner was declared.

Seniors won the Spirit Stick this year, but it was close. Maybe next year . . .

-- Emma Zainey, 17

Spirit in the arts, too

School spirit at Lawrence Central starts with the first football game of the season, which is always against Lawrence North. While our team has not done too well this year, it has done pretty well in the past, and our spirit can be seen throughout our school on game days, mostly on Fridays.

School spirit is about showing your support and appreciation for your school. It gives you a sense of pride because you know you are helping your classmates on the field. Having school spirit also keeps the atmosphere in the school alive and helps students have a little fun.

While the school spirit at Lawrence Central is contagious, I have not caught it yet, at least when it comes to sports. I don't attend a lot of games. I am more of a performing-arts person.

When it comes to performing arts, I've got plenty of spirit. I am in our advanced orchestra and play the violin, but I support all our choirs, orchestras and bands. Our performing-arts program is one of the best in the state, but we don't get the same recognition as the sports teams do. I think that we work just as hard as the athletes do, and we should be honored the same.

It is important for all students to feel that they have the support of other students who want them to do well. There are no pep rallies for performing arts, but I don't think we need one -- we already have a lot of school spirit for what we do. But I wish that the rest of the student body would support us, too.

Athletes and performers have a lot in common. We both receive the support of our parents, who attend each game or contest. We get the same rush of feelings right before a game or competition. And we know the same feeling of exhilaration when we beat a rival.

-- Nicole Alabi, 17

Escalating excitement

To me, school spirit means participation and pride in your school.

Although Park Tudor may be small, the students exhibit a lot of school spirit. Almost everyone participates in a sport, and everyone belongs to a club. Also, many students attend games like soccer, football, volleyball and tennis, even on weeknights.

For different sports, there are pack-the-house nights, or pack-their-house nights, which many participate in. Pack-the-house night usually happens once in each sport, typically on senior night, which is the last home game.

Often students arrange their own transportation. This usually happens when a team plays a rival, like when Park Tudor plays its football game against Heritage Christian.

Homecoming is always a fabulous week of games, dress-up days and surprises, like contests for different grade levels at the school pep rally, and the announcement of the dance's theme.

As a sophomore, I play volleyball and run track. I am also in the French Club, Honor Council and the Conservative Club, and go to as many sporting events as I can. It is really fun to see people perform at what they love, because a different side of them is often revealed.

After attending three other schools, I have never felt as much school spirit as I do at Park Tudor. Even after I have left high school, I will remember all the crazy things we did, and the wonderful feeling that came with supporting our school.

-- Rajpreet Heir, 15

A difficult adjustment

School spirit is the overall student attitude toward the school and its events. It doesn't really affect the daily atmosphere at Decatur Central High School, other than at homecoming and prom.

I just transferred to Decatur from Arlington High School, and there is a major contrast between Arlington and Decatur in terms of school spirit. At Decatur, football is the sport that seems to raise the most school spirit, just like at many other schools. At Arlington, basketball was the biggest event.

There are other differences as well. Decatur students really get into homecoming. They paint their bodies, dye their hair and participate in all the theme days. At Arlington, however, school spirit was minimal, and people could not care less about it, other than coming to the game and talking. School spirit is confined to athletes and band members at Arlington.

Personally, I have little or no school spirit at all, mainly because I dislike Decatur Central. Coming from a predominantly black and Hispanic school in the inner city to a predominantly white school in the suburbs has been difficult. I'm not entirely used to the overall atmosphere of the school. I feel uncomfortable.

Maybe in time I will adjust and begin to enjoy my time at Decatur.

-- Cedric Peterson, 16