Sarah Maddox
Reporter
During the week of Oct. 22, students will be participating in Color for a Cause Day, High Society Day, Costume Day, Turn Back the Clock Day, and Red and Black day in order to celebrate Spirit Week. The Student Coalition and administration have organized the week.
According to Principal Dr. Bryan Luizzi, all of the preparations that come along with Spirit Week are well worth it. “Spirit week is fun,” he said. “People really get into it, and it’s a great opportunity to show positive school spirit.”
Spirit Week kicks off on Monday with Color for a Cause Day. Freshmen will be wearing yellow to support Teen Suicide awareness. Sophomores will dress in orange for animal cruelty awareness. Juniors will wear green to support a clean and healthy environment, and seniors will support breast cancer awareness with pink.
Following, Tuesday will be High Society Day, when students dress up in formal wear. According to Student Coalition member Henry Greer, students enjoy this theme. “It’s a popular spirit day,” he said.
Student Coalition president Will Hennessy sees how students enjoy the fancy attire. Students have a chance to show off their own interpretation of class on High Society Day. “High Society Day shows individual school spirit,” he said.
The next spirit day, on Wednesday, will be Costume Day. This is a new spirit day to replace Clone Day; the difference this year is that dressing up with a group of friends is optional, and now students can dress up on their own.
Based on previous years, Clone Day, now Costume Day, is the most popular day of Spirit Week yet also the most time-consuming according to Dr. Luizzi. “I know that a lot of thought goes into Costume Day,” he said.
Will agreed that Costume Day involves the most planning. “It causes the most amount of stress for people, but I think people have the most fun with it,” he said.
Thursday will be Turn Back the Clock Day, when students dress as if they are in a different decade. Freshmen will relive the 1950’s, sophomores will dress in ’60’s attire, juniors will turn back the clock to the ’70’s, and seniors will bring back the ‘80’s.
Spirit Week will end with Red and Black Day to show New Canaan Pride. Students will come to school dressed in the ram colors of red and black. “The most shocking moment of Spirit Week [last year]was probably Friday morning, Red and Black Day, in the cafeteria,” said Dr. Luizzi, who was new to NCHS last year. “There had to be 600 people there, all wearing red and black, all crammed in and loud but really happy and with a lot of school spirit.”
Also on Red and Black Day will be the annual pep rally, where students will get the chance to cheer for their grade and school. This year’s pep rally will be on Dunning Field, not in the gym. If it rains, the pep rally will be rescheduled.
With all of the excitement of Spirit Week, students must follow some safety precautions. Dr. Luizzi would like to remind students of a few commonly broken rules during Spirit Week: “Things like scooters, masks, radios, and that kind of stuff is not allowed,” he said. “If it distracts from what we’re here to do, which ultimately are core purposes of what happens in the classroom, then we have to make a change.”
Junior Jackie Millisits anticipates Spirit Week. “Spirit week is always one of the highlights of the school year,” she said.
Student Coalition member, sophomore Veronica Ma, is also excited for Spirit Week. “Spirit week is going to be really awesome. It’s an opportunity to branch out and identify yourself with the entire school.”
