Homecoming

2024 Hall Decorating Contest 

by Reese Judd and Rain Magog

Amidst the chaos of the fall spirit week, four grades were put to the task of transforming their hallways into different board game themes. For the seniors, they chose to convert their lockers into a sweet Candy Land, for the juniors it was the bloody and mysterious Clue game. The underclassmen decided on Jumanji for the sophomores, and Monopoly for freshmen. The seniors started off the week strong with beginning their sweet evolution almost immediately. The lead of these decorations were Lanni Dyn, Molly Herringshaw, Logan Judd, Zoe Craig, Danielle Luke, and many other Honor Society members.  Many involved students spent hours after school drawing a mystical snowman. These senior high school students brought their A game, and throughout the week a steady stream of students put time into crafting their version of Candy Land. They envisioned for a student to walk through the hall and to be able to taste the flavors on their tongue. 

In contrast to the sweet seniors, when walking to the junior hall, the school would become transformed into an ominous crime scene, which would cause goosebumps on even the toughest of teachers. The juniors' progress was slow, due to Clue being a complex and intriguing game, where every teacher in the hall was a suspect. When devising a plot line, they assigned their teachers to different characters and created an intriguing plot line that would stump students throughout the week. The fallen victim was our very own Mr. Kuty (Colonel Mustard), beloved math teacher, who died before his retirement. The suspects were Mrs. Peacock (Benson), Professor Plum (Lutke), Mrs. Peach (Long), Mrs. Scarlet (Spisak), Mr. Green (Ricci), Dr. Orchid (Connors), and Mrs. White (Burney). This heartbreaking mix of people struck fear into fellow faculty’s hearts; how could one of their very own cause a bloody tragedy in the halls of Central Valley Academy? While walking a student would be able to solve the mystery for themselves, which is similar to the actual game of Clue. The juniors, high off of their sophomore victory last year, were eager to secure a back-to-back victory. The hall was littered with fake blood, red streamers, clue cards, grim words, and an interrogation room located at the end of the hall and filled to the brim with files and an air of suspense. The upperclassmen were prepared, however, it is important not to forget the underdogs.

Sophomores this year were prepared to come out on top following their embarrassing loss at last year's fall pep rally as freshmen. With the theme of “Jumanji” (the original board game; not the 2017 film starring Dwanye “The Rock” Johnson) the hardworking sophomores got together and brainstormed how to best modify their space into a wild jungle. With this expendable theme, they purchased animal posters, vines, and used their resources from Mrs. Donahue to create bushes, trees, and other jungle characteristics. When walking through the hall, a student might be ambushed by vines hanging low, or animals, and this atmosphere truly immersed students into jungle life. Different groups of sophomores were after school almost every day of the week, creating, coloring, brainstorming, and working together to bring the jungle to Central Valley Academy. Forget about the thunder, the sophomores brought that jungle! Witnesses attest that while walking through the halls, due to the vivid imagery, they could almost hear the Guns N’ Roses classic “Welcome to The Jungle.” These students truly outdid themselves with the greenery, and their hallway was the talk of the school despite the upperclassmen efforts.  Due to their incredible work ethic, vivid imagination, and epic display of teamwork, these underdogs arose from last year's loss and brought something new and particularly fresh to the table. 

The freshmen, however, were a different story altogether. The first day of the week passed and no one stayed after school, which was somewhat normal, but then another and another— the freshmen were late to the game of decorating. Tasked with the theme of Monopoly, on Thursday a handful of freshmen, with the effort of Mrs. Van Evera and other teachers in this hall, finally put the effort into making the hall look like a Monopoly board. It was a valiant effort, with money signs and property cards scattered throughout the hall, but they simply started too late. Any vision was rushed and not as concise as their upperclassmen. This is typically the fate of the freshman, but hopefully in the years to come they will be able to bond and work together to create a vivid scene, like their sophomores who put in more effort than their previous year. 

The anticipated day of Friday came, and everyone dressed in their Thunder gear were on the edge of their seats. Who was going to come out victorious? The seniors with their chocolate mountain and gumdrops? The juniors with their mysterious plot line and fallen math teacher (murderer still unconfirmed)? The sophomores, who turned their hallway into the habitat of a tiger or elephant? Or the freshman, who managed to unite at the very last minute? That time of the pep rally came, and after the teachers and the cheerleaders danced their hearts out, everyone in the student body was shaking with anticipation. Mr. Keeler finally cleared his throat and announced, freshman in last place, seniors in third, juniors in second, and sophomores were victorious! This ranking was very controversial, especially to the bronze-medaled seniors, but the sophomores shouted in glee. They proved everyone wrong, despite being younger and despite Jumanji the board game getting confused with “Jumanji” the 2017 movie. And, in order to quench the curiosity of the student body, Mr. Keeler announced the killer of Colonel Mustard (Mr. Kuty) as Mrs. Scarlet (Mrs. Spisak). The details of the death were shared, and many people were gobsmacked at the result. Despite science and math going hand-in-hand, Colonel Mustard was betrayed by Mrs. Scarlet in the hall, and with a dagger! 

This pep rally competition allowed the grades to unite and bond while decorating, and also encouraged some friendly competition and trash-talk between different ages. The hall decorating rivalry between all grades is a long-lasting tradition at Central Valley Academy, and it is always the talk of the school once October rolls around.