The band plays “Industry Baby,” the cheerleaders do backflips from other cheerleaders’ hands and the football team runs into the gym one by one to the cheers of the audience. 

Pep rallies have always been a great way for students to feel a connection with their school, their grade level and see many of the performing arts and sports the school has to offer. They might not be perfect, but pep rallies are a high school highlight and should stay the way they are.

The cheers and competitions between classes create a sense of pride for the students. Cheers like “Do It,” the rollercoaster and yelling for the spirit stick create excitement within each class and encourages students to be more active in school activities. Some may point out that the booing might lessen school spirit, but considering it is mostly equally spread between grades, it is unlikely to do anything other than empower the grade cheering to cheer louder.

This not only increases camaraderie and gives students time to hang with their friends who they might not see elsewhere in the day, but also ensures the students are excited for, attend, and successfully represent their school, as it tends to be many schools’ first impressions of other schools. So without pep rallies, students will have less time to let loose from the stress of school and hang out with their friends. For some, the fact that these pep rallies are not optional can be a cause for annoyance, though they are much better than needing to finish off the week watching the clock while doing schoolwork.

Pep rallies also give the Performing Arts department the chance to show off the skills they learned for football season. This can also create interest, as other performances, such as halftime shows, are only attended by a portion of students. With mandatory pep rallies every student has the opportunity to see and hear all the performances, so the loss of pep rallies would decrease this type of student involvement. 

Some schools do not have pep rallies and school spirit suffers, such as Econ River High School. They are always easy to spot at football games, with an unenthusiastic or empty student section, as all who regularly attend football games can attest.

 Pep rallies overall help the students and school get closer and have more fun all the while, by promoting student participation. This allows students a break from school work and increases student pride and outlooks on school. So while no pep rallies are perfect, high school without pep rallies would be boring and would lead to a far less involved and prideful school.

Seniors supposedly rule the school. Juniors are almost on their way out. Sophomores are congratulated for making it this far. Then there’s the dreaded freshman class. 

As you yell “Do it, do it, do it” then boo the freshman, think about what you’re doing. Is it really all that necessary? As you rush the gym floor, is it necessary? The dangers, sense of “team spirit” and mandatory participation in the pep rally take away from the experience.

Pep rallies are a fun way to introduce school spirit and camaraderie into all schools, almost like a team bonding activity, but booing your teammates doesn’t really make a perfect team. Through chants in which every class gets to cheer for themselves and while each class is respectively booed, freshmen get it the worst. 

Most can understand the anti-freshman sentiment because there was a time when they were the victims, but this is not the message to send in someone’s first year of high school. The feelings of so-called “hatred” for freshmen may not even run that deep, yet the actions still persist. Since pep rallies are held before games, it should be the home team vs. away teams—not home team vs. home team. Maybe more encouraging cheers could be worked into the process, like seniors chanting “SENIORS” instead of booing freshmen.  

Another problem with pep rallies is the fight for the coveted spirit stick. When people get excited, their best judgment disappears. It is only a matter of time before someone gets hurt rushing the floor.

In the midst of all the enthusiasm, the administrators have trouble keeping rowdy students in their spots. Imagine: through all the rushing adrenaline and excitement of just being where you are, you and your friends decide to rush the gym floor, for the spontaneity of it all. Fun, right? Wrong. Fun for some students, but not as much fun for everyone else.

The mandatory participation should not be forced upon students. Think of this as a win-win: decreased attendance could help with capacity issues, like the freshman section overflow. If people want the option to opt out, then they should be aware that they could. It could help those sensitive to loud noises, and it could aid those that are concerned about Covid and may be immunocompromised. 

The moment changes are made is the moment when things could start to get better.