A long week of activities encouraging school spirit was concluded on Saturday, October 14 with the annual homecoming dance. The dance includes music, drinks, snacks and a comfortable environment for students to enjoy a fun evening. The question is: Was the dance this year an improvement on the Homecoming dance last year?

Last year, many students complained about the quality of the dance. They were disappointed in the lack of activities, decorations and refreshments given the dance’s massive profit. The ticket price this year remained the same at $25 a ticket, which left a big set of expectations for this year’s dance to improve upon last year’s failures.

The theme for homecoming this year was Under the Harvest Moon, which was showcased with a number of inflatable balloon trees and orange fairy lights around the school. The school building’s lights were also dimmed this year, giving the dance a much better, more relaxed feel.

The event also had a DJ, like last year, who played a mix of older and newer songs that appealed to many; groups of kids came together to dance along to wildly different songs like “Cotton Eye Joe” by Rednex or “Deli” by Icespice.

Water and hot chocolate were served in the cafeteria as beverages, while cookies, chips and snow cones were available as snacks. All of these refreshments required no additional charge.

Still, some students felt as if this year’s dance did not live up to their expectations.

Junior Dorothy McMillen felt as if this year was even worse than last year.

“This year the music was lacking … going from a great song to five songs that I didn’t know or enjoy,” McMillen said. “I loved last year’s theme and decorations, [but this year had less going for it].”

This was definitely not the opinion of all students who attended.

“I thought it was fun,” said Junior Keira Knedeisen. “The decorations and theme seem to be a bigger hit this year than last year, and I really liked how everything turned out.”

There are, however, some factors that may affect a student’s experience that are out of the school’s control. This includes a student’s personal preparation.

“This year was better because I went with my best friends, and we had planned more things out in advance,” junior Johanna Huggins said. “I guess I just felt more comfortable.”

Naturally, as students progress through their high school years, they may begin to feel more comfortable around staff and students, which influences their enjoyment of the dance. Sometimes, that is all it takes to make or break one’s Homecoming night.

Overall, opinions on this year’s dance seem to be more favorable as compared to last year. It seems the wide spread criticisms from last fall were taken to heart in an attempt to ensure that the Homecoming dance was made as fun as possible.