We are well into the new school year and Homecoming is fast approaching. I know that our ASB has done an excellent job planning a week celebrating all that is great about Mountlake Terrace High School. From Coronation, to the big Assembly to the football game Friday night and finally, the Homecoming Dance on Saturday, it is very exciting week.
This year’s Homecoming celebration is especially important given the fact that this year is the 50th Anniversary of Mountlake Terrace High School. 50 years of outstanding celebrations is quite an accomplishment and this year we need to make our Homecoming extra memorable.
Because of the significance of this year’s celebrations, it is important to remind ourselves that while Homecoming is a week to celebrate all that is great about Mountlake Terrace High School, we need to remember not to let our celebrations get out of control.
When I came here six years ago, there were some behaviors that took place at school that were not very positive and we have worked hard to place a focus on all the good things we do and eliminate the negative aspects of Homecoming.
So, what am I talking about? For the most part, our Homecoming is a great week. There is one day that we need to work on, we need to remember that Homecoming Friday, while a very fun day, is still a day of school. We have put the assembly at the end of the day so we can all maintain a focus on school until the assembly in the afternoon.
Then there are the obvious questions like, “can we have face paint?” The answer is no. You may not paint your entire face. We have allowed students to paint their class number on their faces, but if you have any other paint on your face, we will ask you to wash it off.
A big issue we have had to continue working on is tagging. Tagging is when a student marks on another student with a pen or paint. Simply put, this is not ok. Period. Marking on another student, regardless of whether they give you permission or not, is a form of hazing and as such carries with it some pretty harsh consequences. Please understand this and do not engage in this kind of behavior.
Finally, any kind of behavior that disrupts the school day is not acceptable. This includes pranks on the school. In the end, the best advice I have for everyone is this: go to your classes, hang out with your friends, enjoy the day and get ready for the afternoon.
I really hope that we can all take a role in making our Homecoming one that we can celebrate for being a positive experience worthy of the 50 years that MTHS has been a school. I appreciate all of the work that everyone has put into Homecoming and it us up to all of us to make sure we have a great Homecoming.