With the red carpet laid down, the faculty members ready for a long night, and the poker tables set up, the scene was set for the 2012 Junior-Senior, Jesuit-Ursuline Homecoming Dance on October 27, 2012. Around 7:00 PM, excited students started to roll in. Seniors were dressed up in crazy costumes while Juniors were dressed in sharp suits and ties with their beautiful dates next to them. As the DJ started to crank up the tunes in the Terry Center and the cards were beginning to be dealt in the cafeteria, the night of friends, food, and fun began.
Every year, the Jesuit Student Council is responsible for planning the Homecoming dance for the Juniors and Seniors. This year, the planning was spearheaded by Student Body President Basil Seif ’13 and Vice President Jeff Ackels ’13, along with the help of Student Council moderator Mr. Hanley.
For the past 16 years or so, the dance has traditionally been held at a hotel, in a dance hall, or a large ballroom. However, due to the increased cost from the hotel, Jesuit decided to host the event on campus. “Hosting this event gave [Jesuit] the opportunity to show ourselves off to our guests and make a great impression on them,” said Vice Principal Mr. Knize.
Since the event was being held at Jesuit, it allowed for some additions to the night. Along with the usual dancing, the cafeteria offered 15 blackjack and Texas Hold ‘Em tables, a craps table, and a roulette table where students could enjoy a break from the dance floor with some fun games and gambling. While the gambling was all in good humor, a small incentive for the students existed. When a student was done playing he could turn in his chips for raffle tickets.
The more chips you won, the more raffle tickets you got. The winner of the raffle received tickets to a Dallas Mavericks basketball game. Luke Gibbons ’14 said, “I thought the blackjack tables were a great addition to Homecoming. It provided a good alternative to dancing.” The cafeteria also offered free Buffalo Wild Wings, a popular restaurant among the Jesuit students. Rickey Burns ’14 joked, “I think I ate like 50 wings at Homecoming”.
However, a popular topic at the dance was the decline of student attendance at the dance, more specifically from the Junior class. This decrease in attendance was because two very popular concerts occurred on the same night. Ghostland Observatory, an electric dance group known for their fantastic light shows, played at the Palladium Ballroom in Downtown. Just down the road in Fair Park at the Gexa Energy Pavilion, country music stars Luke Bryan and Jason Aldean performed.
The fact that three popular events happened to all be scheduled for one night made for tough decisions for students. Patrick Campbell ’14, a student who attended the Ghostland concert, said, “I had already been to Homecoming freshman and sophomore year, and I love listening to Ghostland, so I didn’t want to miss the opportunity to see them live.” Max Ready, another Junior agreed, “I love Jason Aldean and had already purchased my ticket for his concert before Homecoming came around.” Students who did attend Homecoming seemed to all have good things to say about the night, though. Jordan Rayfield ’13 reminisced, “People who went to the concerts missed out because me and my date had a great time at Homecoming.” However, all students appeared to have had a great time, regardless of what event they attended that night.
On top of this good news, the administration noted that all Jesuit students stayed safe at all the events. Mr. Knize said, “I know the kids represented our school very well wherever they chose to go”. Overall the Jesuit Homecoming was a great experience for the students. The Roundup would like to congratulate the Student Council for a night well put together.
