Students Share Thoughts On Homecoming Pep Assembly

Arrowhead’s homecoming pep assembly was held on October 14, 2022. It was held on the football field at 1:10pm. In preparation for the homecoming game later that night, the pep assembly included everyone from both North and South campuses.

It was a windy 48°F, unlike last year’s pep assembly where it was in the 80’s. The 32 degree difference played a part in the overall experience according to Sydney Ray Arrowhead senior, Jack Delzer Arrowhead senior, Sophie Nowak Arrowhead junior, and Danielle Pikalek Arrowhead sophomore.

Arrowhead senior, Sydney Ray said, “I would say indoor because of the weather. I guess if they can plan it ahead of time, have something that could be done indoors or outdoors in case of the weather. If it was raining, it wouldn’t have been as fun.” 

If the pep assembly were to be held indoors, there would have to be two different assemblies, one for south and one for north.

Some activities held throughout the pep assembly were Bubble Soccer, Donut Eating Contest, and Tug o’ War. 

Students were involved in on field activities and some say they’d like students to be involved a bit more. 

Danielle Pikalek, an Arrowhead sophomore said, “If it isn’t already run by the students more, I’d say have the students run the pep rally instead of the teachers.” 

Students think that most of the pep assemblies are run mostly by teachers. While this is not the case, students think that other students from the student body should be more involved.

Specifically, students such as Pikalek, Nowak, and Ray would like the Arrowhead Gators to be involved more in the pep rally. The Arrowhead Gators are a group of students who lead the spirit section at athletic events, and assemblies. They help lead the colors, roller coaster, and banana cheers, along with others. 

“I think that [the gators] really only kind of did the cheers. I feel like if we get to see them out there more, if they were interactive with other things, I feel like that would’ve been a little better,” Ray said. 

In past years, the pep assemblies have been held inside and at times they have been held at different buildings. The last time this happened was 2019. After that year, the assemblies were held outside and with both the campuses together according to Mr.Reineking.

Some seniors remember the split campus pep assemblies. 

Arrowhead senior Jack Delzer said, “I think that having it combined is fine, it just has to capture attention the whole time.” 

At this year’s pep assembly, there was a poor turnout for the seniors, most left when going to the football field.  

“Maybe between 100-200…there are about 550 students in the senior class,” Chayse Ferris said.

According to the Kids Directory, the normal attention span for teenagers ranges from 30-50 minutes. Students need to have something to do with their hands or feet to keep their attention higher, according to the Strengths Asia website.

Nowak said, “I’d have more students involved, like more activities.” 

Dezler said students should be more involved and keep them engaged.

The pep assembly was over an hour long. 

Pikalek said, “I think no more than an hour,” in regards to the length of the pep assembly. 

Three students said that they would like the pep assembly to be shorter, one said the length was fine, and one said it should be longer. 

“I think I would try to do like instead of who does what before, who participates in the eating contest or whatever, they should pick people from the student section,” Ray said. 

The students all had different activities that they liked the most. Some favorite parts of the assembly for students were Bubble Soccer, leaving, being able to watch it from the field, the field goal kicking, and the boys cheerleading. 

Even though some left early, some remained to see the finish of the 2022 homecoming pep assembly.

“I think it’s kind of cool to have everyone there at the same time. I feel like that makes it a little more fun,” Ray said.