Image from Sarah Hamilton. Top: Class of 2025 on Hippie Day.
Spirit Week was just a few weeks ago, and once again the most spirited among us went all out to dress up and perform in their class skits. However, it has not gone unnoticed that the number of spirited people has dwindled year after year. It may not seem so to the freshman who have come from Centerville and are experiencing Spirit Week for the first time, but to the rest of us, and especially to teachers, there has been a clear decrease in spirit over the years.
The senior class is still as spirited as ever, blowing their whistles for army day and zipping around on scooters for nerd day, but the underclassmen is where the problem lies. Many of the freshmen don’t dress up because their friends aren’t doing it or because they think it will be embarrassing. Get over your fears and do it anyway, we say! Spirit Week is one of the few times a year where we all come together to just be silly and have fun. You only get a few chances to coordinate with your friends and come to school in elaborate costumes, so embrace it. As we grow up, we tend to care less about how others perceive us and gain confidence. This is clearly seen with the seniors who aren’t scared of being embarrassed and dress up anyway to celebrate getting to their final year. Some underclassmen don’t try to participate because they are waiting until senior year to do so. Seniors win the spirit competition every year anyway, so why try?
Another root cause of our decline in spirit is the increased importance of academics. High school has become quite competitive in recent years because many students are fixated on getting into a good college. People are prioritizing academics over spirit and fun. A common sentiment we hear is “why would I put in the effort to dress up, when I have to study for a test tomorrow?” Even out of the people that do participate, some merely do it for the academic incentives, because some teachers give students extra credit points if they dress up or take part in a skit.
The Covid-19 Pandemic definitely played a key role in this decline as well. Ever since lockdown, many people have gotten used to isolation. However, this is detrimental because human connection is important for our emotional wellbeing, especially at a young age. In recent years, America has been experiencing a phenomenon called the “Loneliness Epidemic,” and this has only worsened due to the internet and social media. People seem to seek out community less.
One thing we could do to increase spirit is have greater incentives. As of now, all the winning class gets is bragging rights. This isn’t that motivational for most students. If we got a pizza party or some kind of prize at the end, more people may be willing to participate. Additionally, if we had a greater say in choosing dress up day themes and skit themes, people would feel more involved in the process.
Spirit Week isn’t the only time where spirit matters. We have sports games all year where our athletes represent our school as Huskies. Other than special games such as the Homecoming football game and Battle of the Boulevard, our spirit at sporting events as a school is quite underwhelming. Many sports don’t get the hype they deserve. It’s important for us to show our support for each other and to celebrate our wins. This applies to more than just our athletes. Everyone at our school should have their accomplishments celebrated, from artists to clubs, and more.
But the real question is do we even need spirit? Should we all have a sense of pride for being Huskies? Many of us don’t value our high school experience very highly. We see Washington High School as a place we have to go to for a bit before moving on to bigger and better things. Some people even think of it as a place of pain and suffering. We want to move on and forget. However, there is value in going to a place every day for 4 years. High school is something that sticks with you, as much as we may try to forget it. Ages 14 to 18 are such formative years in our lives; these years shape your personality and future, and high school is a major contributing factor to this. As humans we have this intrinsic feeling of wanting to be a part of something. High school gives you opportunities for that, whether it be clubs, sports teams, or school spirit. The whole purpose of school spirit is to build community and to be part of something bigger than yourself. During Spirit Week and sports games, we get the chance to stand united in support of something. Even if you maybe won’t identify as a Washington Husky for the rest of your life, it’s important to care at least a little about this school and our community. It’s up to the newer generations of students to bring the spirit.
Huskies in the Halls: Is school spirit in decline?
Freshman: Aarna Sripada
“Honestly I think all the upperclassmen do spirit week well, but people like freshmen and sophomores just think they are too cool to dress up and participate in skits, so it just makes our classes look boring.”
Sophomore: Noelle Dalipe
“I think the dress up days were really good. I feel like this year everyone had so much more spirit. Especially the days like the 90s and Western days for us. And it was so cool to see all the seniors because they really go all out.”
Junior: Winnie Bui
“I think school spirit is decreasing because people have become disconnected from each other due to an excessive use of social media. Although social media can be good for promoting school spirit, I notice that people can feel discouraged from participating when social media portrays this stuff as ‘cringy’ or ’embarrassing.’ Honestly, I think people should just have fun and live free from what others think.”
Senior: Charmaine Halligan
“I think that before covid school spirit was much higher, but after being isolated students were more inclined tonot participate. It is only now that things have started to go back to normal, but since its peak, school spirit at Washington has gone down significantly.”
Staff: Mr. Soltau
“I don’t think that school spirit is in decline, but it has changed because there are more ways to show school spirit. It’s not just about dressing up during spirit week and bleeding orange and black. It’s also about representing our school in competitions, like in DECA, helping multiple clubs, acting in our school’s theater, playing in Band, or participating in our school’s cultural performances. In their own way, these students represent Washington and therefore show school spirit.”