From Monday, May 13, to Friday, May 17, Archie Williams ASB organized a school-wide spirit week, in an effort to boost student spirit heading into Prom weekend. The spirit week consisted of various opportunities for students to dress up and showcase their creativity, as well as corresponding lunchtime events to celebrate the festive week.
Monday, May 13, kicked off the week with the theme of “Adam Sandler Day.” ASB encouraged students to dress like the famous actor, donning their comfiest and baggiest clothing to school. Most outfits consisted of basketball shorts or track pants paired with an oversized tee or hoodie.
Tuesday, May 14, ignited a friendly rivalry with ASB’s own take on the classic “Country vs. Country Club,” theme, coined “Western vs. Wimbledon.” Students of all grades participated, showing up to school in varying tennis or cowboy outfits.
Senior and ASB President Charley O’Neil hoped that going with “classic” themes for both the spirit days and Prom would allow more students to easily participate.
“Prom spirit week this year fell on AP testing, so we knew we weren’t going to have 100 percent participation because of that, but we tried our best to make the spirit days simple, fun, and inclusive,” Charley said. “That way everyone could participate, and we [hoped] to raise spirits just by the sheer amount of people involved.”
On Wednesday, May 15, for Jersey Day, many Archie Williams student athletes opted to wear their school team jerseys, while others wore jerseys supporting a favorite player or team. Seniors showed up in their Senior Class of 2024 custom jerseys. The themed day also featured a rematch between the juniors and seniors at their lunchtime Powerpuff flag football game.
During lunch, Archie Williams students watched the seniors attempt to redeem themselves after their previous Powerpuff loss against the juniors. Although the juniors had a few notable moments when they seemed on the verge of pulling ahead, the seniors maintained the lead, winning three to two in the end.
“[We] wanted to keep up the streak we had from beating the seniors originally… The team itself was fun to be around, and I hope next year more people from my grade participate,” said junior Caroline Lozaw, quarterback of the junior Powerpuff team.
Thursday, May 16, students showed up to school in their favorite beach or summer outfits. Students attended class in summer dresses and shorts, commonly pairing the outfits with flip-flops or sunglasses. To truly get students into the summer mindset, ASB provided complimentary shaved ice during lunch.
Freshman Ashlyn Alba believes ASB successfully enhanced the summer atmosphere at school with the shaved ice provisions.
“The snow cones were good. They made me feel like I was at the beach, and all of the fruit flavors would [definitely] remind people of summer,” Ashlyn said.
The main spirit event, the infamous black light rally, concluded the spirit week on Friday, May 17. ASB instructed students to show up to school wearing any form of white clothing, to be illuminated by the rally’s lights. The gym rally during fourth period featured an interactive batting contest from the varsity baseball team, the Archie Spirit Can, and various games like “Tic Tac Glow” led by ASB.
Nearing the end of the rally, Archie Williams Dance Troupe performed their final rally dance of the year, accompanied by black lights and light-up gloves. For the finale, leadership groups ASB and Peer Resource broke out into their own flash mob to “Watch Me (Whip / Nae Nae)” by Silentó, an instantly recognizable and nostalgic song.
“I have been on Dance Troupe for three years now, and this was my last time dancing with my teammates,” said senior Brody Rhodes. “I think the rally went really well in the blacklight. Spirit weeks [in general] are always fun, looking at how people express themselves through clothing.”
The Prom Spirit Week ending with the black light rally raised the spirits heading into Prom weekend and set a positive tone for the ending of the school year. The juniors and seniors partied at the Prom, taking place Saturday, May 18, at the Galleria in San Francisco, from 8-11 p.m.
