On Friday, Aug. 13, hundreds of students gathered on the turf field for the 2021 Back to School Dance, however, this year’s dance was very different from dances in the past. In an effort to make this school year more normal, the administration decided to give the green light, but had to make changes in order to have a COVID-friendly dance. 

This year, many aspects of school are slowly returning back to normal. Most years, the school holds a Back to School Dance in the gym with colorful lights and costumes. In an effort to have a more COVID safe dance, it was held outdoors on the turf field.

For freshmen and sophomores, this was their first high school dance. Many were unsure what to expect, and they had nothing to compare this year’s dance to. 

“I expected it to be more like what you see in movies, like everyone dancing and having fun,” sophomore Avery Looney said. “When I got there, nobody was dancing. Everyone was just standing in a circle, talking and hanging out.”

After almost a year and a half of not being able to attend any school dances, many upperclassmen were ecstatic about finally being able to have a Back to School Dance. For seniors, this would be their last B2SD. 

“I liked previous Back to School Dances better than I liked the one this year,” senior Addie Smith said. “I like it better when the dances are inside with louder music and fun lights. Since we were outside, it was harder to hear the music and it was pretty bright. It also seemed like there were a lot fewer people dancing.”

Although students were disappointed with the dance, there were some new aspects that seemed to be a crowd pleaser. This year, there was a big firework show at the end of the dance. Some thought it helped make up for some of the more disappointing aspects. 

Another new concept of this year’s B2SD was that everyone dressed up according to a common theme, as opposed to wearing costumes with their friends. The theme was neon, which proved to be controversial. Brooke Philips, the drama teacher who has been helping out at the dance for the past few years, liked the theme.

“Not having costumes was nice,” Philips said. “I feel like doing the color theme was more appropriate and people were still able to have creative outfits.”

Others, like Looney, wished we had the opportunity to wear costumes. 

“In my opinion, neon feels like something we would dress in for a football game, not a school dance,” Looney said. “It is more fun to choose costumes and dress up as a group.”

Thankful to be able to have a dance at all, many students were able to overlook these changes. 

“Even though it was different than years past, I’m still grateful we finally got to have a school dance again,” Smith said. “Overall, I had fun and I’m glad I could have a Back to School Dance for my  senior year.”

Despite the adjustments to the 2021 Back to School Dance, students were glad they could participate in more normal school events.