WEB EXCLUSIVE
By Ashley Schulman
Many students have noticed that the already tepid school spirit at South has declined even more over the past few years. Not many people dress up for spirit week, few students attend sporting events, and it is rare that you see someone wearing a Great Neck South shirt in the hallway. But this year’s first Homecoming Dance and Carnival may be a solution for this lack of school spirit.
The Key Club’s Homecoming Dance and Carnival hopes to raise both spirit for the school and money for various charities. Senior Lelina Chang, Key Club board member, said, “The reason why we haven’t had successful dances in the past is because our students lack a sense of unity and excitement.” The Key Club has worked very hard to make sure that this is not the case this year.
The planning of the dance began this summer. Lelina Chang and her sister, junior Melora Chang, contacted a corporation and received a $1000 donation to help fund the dance. They also asked local stores in Great Neck to donate money for raffles. Lelina said, “A lot of personal time was sacrificed planning the dance.”
At the beginning of the school year, the sisters met with Ms. Elliott and Mr. Duggan for approval and additional planning. They also contacted Mr. Marrow, who helped dig up old carnival games. The Key Club has been working hard after school to fix all of the old games and make new banners to decorate the gym.
In their determination to bring the school together, the Chang sisters invited many different clubs to promote the event and run booths at the carnival. Lelina hopes that by doing this, students with different interests will attend the dance and make it a more diverse event.
Not only will the dance help improve school spirit, but it will also raise money for charity. A certain number of ticket sales from each grade will be donated to the charity of the grades’ choice, such as the Make A Wish Foundation.
As the dance is approaching, students are becoming more excited about it. Senior and president of the Key Club, Felicia Kane, said, “I’m excited about the fact that it is another way to create school spirit and for all the classes to come together to do something fun.”
Unlike Senior Prom or Junior Event, the Homecoming Dance and Carnival is supposed to be a more relaxed event without the pressure of trying to find a date. Lelina said, “I envisioned this event as something for everyone to enjoy with their friends and a day just to have fun!”
The dance will be held Saturday, Oct. 5 in the East gym after the Homecoming football game. Key Club members are continuing to sell tickets during school.