Caitlyn Virgillito

As students enter the gym, the cheer team is chanting Marian cheers and the student body is getting pumped up to celebrate all of the fall activities. On Aug. 30, the Marian students and faculty experienced the first new and improved pep rally. The gathering included each fall sports team getting recognized for their effort and future goals, spirited performances from the cheer and dance teams, and a competition between the classes to win the spirit stick. Although every class put forth a energetic effort, the senior class came out on top.

The addition of the spirit stick competition enables the whole student body to participate in the pep rally. The competition consists of each class chanting a series of cheers and whichever is the loudest, is awarded with the highly-sought after spirit stick. “I think the new pep rallies are a great idea, it’s nice to have a bigger, peppier assembly than the many other ones. It’s more of a special occasion and something to look forward too… I’m excited to see how each pep rally will improve… Marian has a lot of traditions already, but that doesn’t mean we can’t create more!” math teacher Mrs. Jaime Piernicky, a spirit stick judge, said.

The cross country, volleyball, golf and softball teams were acknowledged at this year’s fall sports pep rally. Each varsity team was called to the front of the gym with an introduction from their coaches and an update on how their season has been going. These lively assemblies will occur once a season to celebrate every NSAA activity and their participants’ dedication.

The decision to renovate the school’s pep rallies was a group effort. With feedback from students, Principal Mrs. Susie Sullivan, Athletic Director Ms. Rochelle Rohlfs and Dean of Student Affairs Ms. Ronda Motykowski wanted to reduce the amount of special schedules during the school year and imitate other high school pep rallies. A typical high school pep rally includes the band playing so loudly the bleachers shake, the cheerleaders leading the whole school to lose their voices from cheering so passionately and an exorbitant amount of school spirit.

A pep rally creates an environment of enthusiasm and sends the students off in an uplifted mood. “We wanted to get the whole study body involved… the previous state send offs were monotonous and some sports went unrecognized, like basketball,” Rohlfs said. These pep rallies are not just send-offs to state, they’re spirit rallies to get the school more involved.

The student body enjoyed the change in assembly as well. Cross country runner, Colleen Sully ‘20 said, “This pep rally was more animated than they have been in the past. I think my sport was totally equal to the others… it was really cool how Mr. Wright called all 99 of us up to the front so whole school could see how big the team really is. I’m pumped for the future rallies too, I think they will be just as successful and fun!”

Rohlfs said that the first pep rally went really well, “It was a good blend of introductions from coaches and teams and entertainment from the cheer and dance teams. The traditions will continue to grow as we improve each pep rally.”