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.