We Have Spirit; Yes We Do!
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May 20, 2010 • Andres Grimm, Staff Writer
Filed under Opinion
In the SGA campaign speeches made to the student body on May 10, every candidate made a point about building school spirit. Most speeches had a line that ran something like “To increase school spirit, my goal is make new class cup competitions that are fun and will become traditions.”
Despite losing several traditions- Senior Spirit Week, Beach Week, Departmental Art awards, and talent show judges- the Student Government Association has been building school spirit by creating class cup events such as the Guitar Hero competition and Fear Factor. Former Treasurer and current Vice President Tim Gregg stated after his speech that Guitar Hero competition and the Whiz Quiz are the best because “the entire school gets involved and the winning grade gets bragging rights.”
The Mane News conducted a survey through English classes to gauge student opinion on school spirit and consider three factors that contribute to it: traditions, self-expression, and sports.
Traditions
Of the 136 students who participated in the survey, 87 stated that traditions were the most important contributor to school spirit. They named class cup events as the most important traditions by 48 students for reasons such as “it energizes the each class” and “and brings the whole school together.”
Dean of Students Ginger Cobb says that building class spirit is important because it tends to bring the whole school together. Those who participated in the survey agreed. Over 40% said that class cup events were the most fun, and influenced the school spirit just as much. “It’s really cool looking at the different grades in their class colors during pep rallies,” says Cobb.
Although the SGA has created many class cup events, “smaller class cup competitions are what keep the school together throughout the year,” says a respondent. Though many respondents argued that more class cup events would boost school spirit, some stated that “less is more because when class events do happen, they are more exciting.”
Cobb says that one of her favorite traditions is having the opening chapel and graduation in the National Cathedral, symbolizing the start and finish of a student’s career at St. Andrew’s. She also expressed her fondness to the Guitar Hero competition because “the whole school gets into it.”
Just over 35 respondents complained about a “lack of traditions” or that “there are no good ones,” but the school boasts several that rarely get boring. Homecoming tents is a decades-old tradition that every upper schooler has experienced first hand and every middle schooler watches in awe. Some students complained that “only senior traditions exist.” The senior run- at the end of the day on was selected as the favorite tradition (21) followed closely by the senior chapel (18).
Self-Expression
Another key component to school spirit is the freedom students have to express themselves. Sophomore Boni Agbaniyaka, says “Yeah, St. Andrew’s allows a lot of self-expression.” Unlike most schools in the MAC or ISL that require their students to wear a uniform, only St. Andrews’s, GDS, and Maret offer a more relaxed dress code.
Photography teacher Hevia Paxson believes “the most spirit from students is from lots of small, unofficial ways of supporting each other. I have not seen this at other schools I have been at.” Examples include a last-minute Facebook group to organize an “orange out” for junior class, the seniors chanting “2-0! 1-0!” and “wooing” when a class year is called up during the honors assemblies.
Sports
Sports also generates a large portion of school spirit. About one in every four survey takers said that sports were the biggest contributor to spirit. A notable trend amongst the surveys was the phrase “having more students at sporting events.”
Some ideas presented to improve sports events to increase turns outs were “ having the lion mascot at every important game,” “selling dress down tickets to those who wear red at some games,” and “grilling at more games. People love hot dogs.”
The survey proved that St. Andrew’s can be spirited if the SGA makes the changes proposed in the surveys. Most students chose the same options, such as more memorable class cup events, higher attendance at home sports games, and better spirit days. Because all the winning candidates based their speeches on school spirit, the whole school can expect to see improvements.
Because school spirit can last even past graduation, the school may expect to see a group of alumni who want to stay connected, to enroll their children here, and to donate generously. Improvements made next year may benefit not only the current students, but future generations.
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