2012-2013 Homecoming

Homecoming is the time of the year when High School West students can cheer, have a great time, and truly come together as a school.  This year’s homecoming was no exception.  From spirit week to the final declaration of the homecoming king and queen, the students’ school spirit created a remarkable last homecoming for the senior class.

The spirit, involvement, and liveliness of the student body was seen during spirit week and created a dramatic build up to pep rally.  As the students and the staff dressed in pajamas, college apparel, fancy clothing, sports apparel, and the assigned grade colors, it set the atmosphere for the rest of homecoming.  English teacher Mrs. Madden stated, “Spirit week is an excellent addition to the homecoming week because it allows those not entirely involved in the pep rally and homecoming to get involved throughout the week.”   However, Spanish teacher Señora Palmada, who is also the Freshman advisor, noted, “I feel that too many students don’t get involved enough.”

Pep rally was a time in which the students in each grade competed to prove that their grade was the best.  This year’s pep rally was a prime example of the spirit of the school. Students from each grade gave everything they had to prove themselves.  When asked about the competition and overall atmosphere of her first pep rally, freshman Jayda Lisman said, “It was truly exciting. I never thought it would be as competitive as it was, but I actually wanted to win. It was completely different than what I expected, in a good way.”

During the pep rally, health teacher Ms. Dittrich became engaged in a moment that had the entire school rushing forward to congratulate her.  On this wonderful proposal, sophomore Kanvar Gulati commented, “It was completely unexpected. Everyone was confused, and when everyone realized what actually happened, all students and teachers began to cheer louder than any other cheering of the night.”

Another surprise was the sophomores winning homecoming.  Sophomore Josh Wende said, “It was completely thrilling and unexpected. It just comes to show that homecoming will be extremely competitive in the upcoming years which adds excitement.”  Señora Palmada commented, “The sophomores truly deserved it. They worked hard, their banner was excellent, and although I wanted the seniors to win because it is their last homecoming, it shows that the competition is fair and that every grade should work their hardest to win.”

When asked about the reactions of the seniors to the sophomores winning, senior Brittany Nierman stated, “Homecoming sets the tone for the year. It is a chance for all of the grades to prove their worth to one another. I think a lot of the seniors were disappointed with the outcome of this homecoming race. I think that seniors just assume that they are going to win since it is their last homecoming, but, as we have seen, that is not always the case. It would have been nice to beat the other grades, but I do believe that the sophomores deserve their win. All of their decorations, their float, their skit, and their overall class spirit was really motivating and applaudable. At the end of the day, I think that the senior class recognizes that the purpose of the homecoming activities was served, for they brought together kids from all different social circles to work together and cheer on their friends for a common purpose.”  Even with the mixed reactions of the result of pep rally, everyone was involved and it displayed the spirit of the HSW community.

The 2012-2013 homecoming started off with hilarious skits in the morning from each grade. Before the football game, HSW alumni and students marched from Signal Hill to the football field in the parade. The homecoming nominees represented themselves one last time before the big announcement of the homecoming king and queen.   Although the Hills West football team lost their Homecoming game, the spirit was high throughout.  In addition, the boys varsity soccer game ended in a victory for West. Students and players rushed onto the field to celebrate. Afterwards, homecoming king and queen were announced.  This year’s king and queen were Jeff Kautz and Mia Pitsironis.

Stephen Imburgia, the sophomore student president, said “This year’s homecoming was amazing. Everyone had an amazing performance and I thoroughly enjoyed being involved throughout the week. I could not have asked for a better homecoming.”