If you’ve even watched a 90s or 2000s movie, you know school dances can be the pinnacle of a high school experience. (Well, at least for the actors in those movies.) But those big bashes don’t come together as effortlessly as Hollywood makes it seem. Countless hours go into planning, decorating, and advertising. And that doesn’t just happen in Hollywood, it happens here at Eastlake too! With Homecoming just around the corner, let’s take a deep dive into how Homecoming gets put together.
First, the biggest part, the theme. It can make or break a dance, so Leadership takes it very seriously. Teams of Leadership kids work to brainstorm ideas for the dance and when they’re done, it goes out to the student body. Once the students give Leadership back their verdict, the classes starts planning for the new theme. Sophia Libosa (’25), three-time leadership student and ASB Vice President, said that these planning days are her favorite. She said she loves how everyone runs around doing their own tasks while working towards a collective goal. Once the planning is done, it’s on to decorations.
The decorations can make the dance spectacular, but how are they created? One of the two Leadership 2 classes works on the hallway into the dance, and the other works on the main commons. Justin Scott (’25), a third-year leadership student, says that through painting and cutting, the students spend about two weeks creating the decorations. Then, after that, it’s time for Homecoming weekend. Starting right after school on Friday, the Leadership team is flipped into overdrive. They work hard to put up decorations and set everything up. Justin Scott (’25) said he loved seeing everything come together every year he’s been a part of the process.
Then it’s Saturday night. Students from all over the school turn in their tickets and head for the dance floor. And after three hours, as the clock hits 10:00pm, leadership starts tearing down the decorations. The main goal is to get all the big pieces of paper off the walls and trash and recycling in their respective containers. Fifteen minutes later, the students leave the school knowing they put together another successful Homecoming dance.
