Spirit Week! Everyone loves a spirit week– it’s an excuse to dress up, have fun, and of course, show school spirit! In the days leading up to Spirit Week, the hallways were covered head to toe in awesome decorations for the then-upcoming dance and football game. All the photos in this article are courtesy of the Shaker Student Government Instagram and the author’s personal photography.   Let’s recap the days of 10/11 to 10/15. 

Tuesday 10/11: Anything But A Backpack!

Spirit Week started out slow, there were plenty of people still wearing backpacks. However, there were some fun backpack replacements including chests, laundry baskets, lampshades, coolers, shopping carts, baby strollers, a tire, a drum, a Dunkin’ donut box, and other assorted non-backpack bags.  The email Student Government sent out warning the student body–nothing disrupting traffic flow, no wagons or luggage bigger than carry-ons, nothing living, sharp or breakable –would not dissuade students from carrying school supplies in the wildest of things, items that toed and possibly crossed the line.

Wednesday 10/12: Disney/Marvel Day!

At first glance, it may seem like there was an underwhelming amount of school spirit due to a lack of prior knowledge.  However, upon closer inspection, we see iconic mouse ears, onesies, full-on cosplays and costumes, and lots of Marvel t-shirts! There was even a lightsaber duel between Mr. Couture and a student in Taft Dining Hall in the morning.  Spider-Man was a favorite amongst the students, with many donning masks, bodysuits, shirts and other paraphernalia of the masked hero. 

Thursday 10/13: Class Colors!

There was no shortage of students wearing their class colors! However, compared to other years, the class colors’ day was very tame with only a few people wearing colored beads and tutus.  Red for freshmen, yellow for sophomores, green for juniors, black for seniors, and white for the teachers.  However, some freshmen had concerns that the red would put a target on their backs, but don’t worry freshmen, it was only for the day!

Friday 10/14: Shaker Pride Blue & White!

School spirit was high on Friday, everyone was super excited and ready to rumble.  Tutus, face paint, bead necklaces, headbands– all in the name of school spirit.  People also were wearing their Shaker paraphernalia, which consisted of jackets, shirts, sports uniforms, and pants.  The class times were shortened to make time for the glorious pep rally. 

The last pep rally was two years ago, when the seniors were then freshmen so people were more excited than ever.  During the pep rally, the classes were corralled into the H-Gym and sorted into their respective bleachers with seniors and juniors nearest to the track field and the sophomores and freshmen nearest to the main office.  The students got to meet the various Shaker sports teams, hear music from the pep band and 11/12 Chorus, see a performance by the JV and Varsity cheerleaders, see a dance by some of the Shaker boys and participate in and watch an exciting game of musical chairs.  The winner of musical chairs won a golden crown and after that Student Government made some announcements and the students were dismissed.

Later that same day, the Homecoming game was about to take place.  While the game began at seven, the festivities already began more than half an hour earlier with the parade.  Some notable members of the Homecoming Parade include Key Club, Student Government, and French Club.  It was a fairly easy ordeal to get into the game: you simply got your ticket on GoFan, confirmed your purchase with the people at the gate and they let you in.  Concessions, merchandise, and raffle tickets were being sold and many people lined up eagerly to get their hands on them.  The Blue Bison went against the Bethlehem Eagles and in the first minute, the Bison had already scored against the Eagles.  It was pretty indicative of who was going to win the game.  However, Homecoming games are not just about football, they are also about coming together.  There was a lot of school spirit displayed by parents, siblings, and students.  During halftime, the Shaker Cheer Squad put on an impressive performance, and then there was a recognition of the 2012 Shaker Varsity Football Team.  The 2012 team was class AAChampions and scored the biggest landslide win against Shenendehowa ever with a 35-8 difference.  At the end of the game, the Bison won by a landslide scoring 55 points against the Eagles’ zero.

Saturday 10/15: Homecoming Dance! 

Unlike last year, the Homecoming dance was finally held back inside the H-Gym.  It is one of the major dances at Shaker, the others being the Senior and Junior Proms.  The tickets, while also being sold during the school week outside of the Library and in the school store, were also being sold from 10-12 a.m. on Saturday.  As the students arrived at 7:00 p.m, the place was decorated with silver and blue streamers to make perfect pictures outside the gym doors and strobing lights inside the gym.  Breathalyzers were utilized during the dance to ensure students had not been drinking or snuck in alcohol.  There was a mix of older and newer songs with tracks ranging from Nicki Manaj to ABBA.  People were dancing, singing, and overall having a lot of fun.  While the dance was not as big as it used to be pre-COVID, it was still a worthwhile experience.