An activity to get our seasonal festivities started is the one and only Hallway Decorating Presented by the Student Council, this activity expresses students’ creativity and creates memories. 

As mentioned, Hallway Decorating is where each grade of the school comes together and decorates its separate section of the hallway, creating an experience for students to bond with each other. 

“The importance of this activity is to contribute your time, take some time away from studies and books and clear your mind, interact with others, socialize, and make it your best year,”  said Principal Mr. Charles Ross.

When Ross first became principal, he was informed by the Student Council advisors about the activity and he wanted to continue the tradition to create more memories.

 “I remember in one year, the students took a cart and cut it in half and attached it to the wall, to make it look like the cart is going through the wall to King’s Cross, the Hogwarts express train station in Harry Potter. In another year, they made moving windmills. I always loved the funny touches and creativity and the way the classes take part in this activity,” said Ross. 

Hallway Decorating serves as another chance to broaden your social circle and make memories for your last year or your whole high school experience overall. Filled with coordination, teamwork, fun, and creativity all in one activity, this activity adds to the list of memorable high school moments

“While I have been coaching in the school even before Mr. Ross as principal, I have always been amazed by the Hallway Decorating activity and I love how inspiring it can be, by the amount of work the students put into the work. Nothing has changed ever since I have been in this school, but I didn’t notice much until I was a teacher,” said History teacher and tennis coach Mr. Wesley Smith.

English teacher and Student Council advisor Mr. James Napoli has been a part of the hallway decorating activity years before and many more to come.

“I help in organizing the event and as one of the class council advisers, I bring the food, and pizza, and support the kids while their activity as an audience and have fun with them,” said Napoli.

In the year 2022,  Hallway Decorating was a huge success with a victory from seniors. Each class had its own theme to display its creativity.

Idhika Turya ‘24, a member of Student Council, shares her experience in organizing and leading the activity for the juniors this year. 

“Despite being juniors, I’d say that hall decorating was still a relatively new realm for us to conquer considering it was only our second year doing it. And with new advisors, we also had to readjust to a brand new board setup and general overview for decorating this year. I was delighted to see the juniors work well together and communicate effectively when it came to minor details such as decorating the retro carpet background and ensuring that nothing was skewed,” said Turya.

The themes for the decorations for each of the classes were as follows: 

The theme of the Freshmen class was “Winter Wonderland,”

The theme of the Sophomore class was “The Nightmare Before Christmas,”

The theme for the Junior class was “Arcade Games,” and lastly 

The theme for the Seniors class was “Toy Story” 

Hallway decorating may not have changed much over the years, but it has introduced different ways of involving the staff and students together giving everyone an opportunity to have a break and relax. 

“Take out your phones, take pictures, make memories, and enjoy the moment,” said Ross.