Semi-Formal 2018

Every year, Homer High School’s 9th and 10th grade Student Council throws one of the most anticipated dances of the year: the “Semi-Formal.” The dance leaves the students with an impression of the 9th and 10th grade classes who collaborated in order to throw the successful dance.

This year, the Class of 2020 was under scrutiny. As veterans in organizing “semi,” they had greater say than the inexperienced freshman, but this also meant that they had a greater responsibility. How did they do? Was semi a success?

I believe that there has been an overall consensus that, yes, it was to a degree. When Caraline Riley was asked if there were any significant improvements from last year’s dance, she replied, “A little bit, yeah… ” She elaborated on the much-improved food, decorations, theme, and overall mood of the dance. Another attendee, Sophia Compagni, stated on the matter of decorations, “They were really good. The streamers, the lights, and the taxis for photos were really cool. I give that a ten.” Nici Petrécsová, Homer’s foreign exchange student from the Czech Republic, also enjoyed the dance. When asked how dances in her country compare to ours she stated, “Our dances are very formal. We wear very formal dresses and dance to formal music. But, I really enjoy the corsages and boutonnieres. We do not do that back home, it is very adorable.”

Members of Link Crew attended the dance, and worked hand-in-hand with the 9th and 10th grade student councils in order to ensure semi was a success. Link Crew is a group of juniors and seniors who act as student leaders and guide the freshmen through their first year of high school. They helped with the sign-in and coat check; they also danced with the underclassman. Jaclyn Deline, a Link Crew member, commented on her role at the dance, “It was very nostalgic to see freshman and sophmores making great memories. I am so glad that I got to help make semi a success.” For many Link Leaders, this was another opportunity to connect with their freshmen and provide further assistance with the transition into high school.

From the perspective of a freshman who helped to plan the event, Sophie Burhans said that they had worked really hard in planning, decorating, organizing, and preparing. It seems that their hard work really paid off. Many freshmen found that it was fun to dress up and get ready for the dance. It was a great experience for many, and they look forward to improving and organizing the dance again next year. Overall, for the first formal freshman dance, the verdict is that it was a big hit.

Despite these positive comments, the music at semi faced backlash. Songs that were played had to be submitted by students through Google Classroom. Most of these songs were rejected due to their profane language content. This incited huge outcry from the student population, who stated that this selective process was unfair and relative. It may have just been the short period of time, but many people were unaware that they could even submit songs to Google Classroom; there was strained communication between those organizing the dance and those attending. Caraline Riley said this on the matter, “I didn’t even know that we were supposed to submit songs,” and Kaia Hubbard admitted that, “I don’t think it worked because I submitted about twenty songs, and one that I had submitted was actually played.”

Naturally, there will always be an issue when organizing such a grand event. However, considering the compliments given to those involved with the organization of the dance, many people seemed happy with the outcome. And to next year’s sophmores, the class of 2020 has some advice for you: have the entire gym open, even if there are not a lot of people; make sure that the music you pick will fit with the mood and audience of the people around you; continue giving out those cheesecakes; advertise early for your dance.

On the behalf of the underclassmen, thank you to the teachers, student volunteers, supervisors, and LINK Crew that helped set up, take down, and regulate the dance. It is greatly appreciated, and your efforts will not go unnoticed.