The bleachers rumble underneath my feet and excitement buzzes in the air. As our football team scores a touchdown, the bubble of anticipation that had grown throughout the play bursts into cheers. Except, the bubble that burst, the cheers, and excitement regarding our school, is minuscule.

The speakers are blaring music, but only the first two rows are jumping. The rest of the crowd stares almost idly, unfazed by the touchdown, talking about something unrelated.

Football games don’t have to be everyone’s scene, but one thing that reigns true from watching the crowd at these games is that we have no school spirit.

The football games, that most leave early, have embarrassingly little amounts of cheering. Class participation for color wars is only decreasing in lower classmen. If you look past the first couple of rows of people at the assembly, participation is lacking. Going all out for spirit weeks is stigmatized as strange.

Coming together with your peers, even is it’s for something you’re forced to be apart of, can be a really special experience. Nothing can be compared to the energy one may feel when everyone around them is screaming at the top of their lungs the school’s fight song at an assembly, almost blowing their voices out in a competition. We have these unique, extraordinary experiences presented to us at school — why don’t we take advantage of them? Why do we, as a school, sit on the bench, refusing to participate?

Medi Nelson (9), dressed up for the color competition this year, but before the competition happened, she had worried that the freshman grade wouldn’t participate much because, “they’re all gonna think it’s awkward. And they’ll think, no, not everyone’s going to do it, so I’m not going to do it.”

People want to fit in, so it only makes sense that they’ll do what the rest of the kids in their grade are doing. If everyone participates in school spirit days, then the people who don’t are the odd ones out. Unfortunately, the opposite is true at our school. Most people don’t get super into these spirit days, so really participating and showing your spirit is odd.

I had the opportunity to observe Libertyville Highschool’s homecoming assembly, and the deafening roars and sounds of thunder took me by surprise in their contrast to the Vernon Hills assemblies I have attended. As loudspeakers blared, “Welcome to the Jungle,” every student leaped into the air, showing their excitement for the assembly to start. Seas of color flooded the gym, as students went as far as painting their faces to show their school spirit. LHS has its color competition the Friday before Homecoming.

“It’s weird not to be wearing the outfits for the spirit days,” Amal Hasan (11), a student at LHS, described. “Having all the juniors unite to take down the seniors and yelling our class cheer or just seeing a junior you have never talked to before and high fiving them — it’s so fun to do these things.”

The social norms at Libertyville High School are opposite to ours; if you don’t go all out, you’re the one sticking out. The level of participation is a defining characteristic of the high school experience there.

“School spirit and spirit week 100% makes high school better,” Hasan mentioned when discussing how school spirit affects her high school experience.

While the high school experience at Vernon Hills can be an enjoyable one, it’s impossible not to wonder if engaging in more school spirit would make the experience even better. Football games and homecoming week could bring students together, and make school a more fun experience. If we are all forced to go to school, why don’t we make the most of it?

Unity, a lacking component in Vernon Hills culture, between students is another driving factor for school spirit. Personally, I have seen judgment between classes in regards to the level of school spirit and outfits for spirit days. I’ve heard people discuss how, for example, that freshman isn’t dressed up at all, or, that sophomore is doing too much. Maybe not every person feels this way, but I know I have felt stares beating into me as I walk down the hall going all out with a spirit day.

Caden Tran (12), Vernon Hills High School’s student body president, explained, in regards to unity, that, “when your class doesn’t feel that united, the school spirit decreases.”

Intriguingly, most school spirit can be witnessed during color wars. During color wars, classes unite to fight for a common goal: to show their superiority against the other classes. This thrilling competition is something most students participate in, and the unity that the students feel towards their peers in their grade level is arguably the highest of the entire year. Unity drives class together during color wars; can more unity among the entire school drive us together for more school spirit?

School spirit is at its all-time high during color wars, making it arguably one of the most invigorating days of the school year. Each class comes together with unparalleled energy to compete against one another for the title of color war winner. The color war high comes from the intense levels of school spirit packed into a competition. No other day in the school year has this much school spirit, which makes color wars special, but other spirit days disappointing. Color wars prove that students at Vernon Hills can have crazy levels of school spirit and make these spirit opportunities really special and fun. Trying to recreate this energy for other days in the school year could significantly improve our high school experience.

All the unity and participation I witnessed at the LHS assembly was unparalleled. I don’t think I saw one student sitting at the assembly, or not going all out with their outfit. LV assemblies start with the entire school cheering, “Yay, Rah, Team,” a school fight song. The entire body of students cheers this together with the same amount of energy they would put into their own color competition.

In addition, each class had its own spirit song that they chanted, trying to get louder than their opponents. Students sang at the top of their lungs and participated to the fullest of their capacity. Whether it’s coming together or separating for competition, students at Libertyville are passionate about showing spirit.

Compare that to Vernon Hill’s most recent assembly, our homecoming assembly. The entire school was supposed to come together to cheer, “Here we go cougars, here we go.” The performance of our school was somewhat lackluster – as I looked around, people seemed confused and unsure about coming together for a song. While this was a first-time thing, the energy was low and the cheering wasn’t nearly as intense in comparison to Libertyville. The lackluster performance acts as proof of the lack of unity between Vernon Hills students, and the effect on school spirit is evident as well.

Libertyville assemblies then turn their attention to the announcement of the homecoming court. Each girl had a super engaging and funny video that introduced them. With each girl that was called up to homecoming court, the cheers of excitement and encouragement from the crowd never faltered.

“It’s really nice,” said Andrea Lara, a teacher at LHS, “all the students cheer this loud for everyone.”

There are also incentives for participating and going all out for spirit weeks at LHS. The class that has the most pride receives a large trophy, decorated to the theme of the assembly. In addition, they announce the winner of #LVPride. LV Pride is where students post their ask to homecoming on Instagram, and the best ask gets announced at the assembly and their dinner paid for by student council. But, the biggest incentive to participate is the sense of unity between everyone at the school and students within classes. Students feel united with one another as they all get super excited about the same thing. Except for color wars, all students dress the same for the spirit days, connecting seniors to freshmen on the common thread of school spirit.

I know that more school spirit can transform the VH experience in a positive way. More unity and fun can make the long days of the school year special and something to look forward to. School spirit may not seem that important to everyone, but school spirit leads to a better atmosphere. Let’s make something we’re all forced to be apart of something that we can all enjoy more. No one ever looks back at high school and wishes they participated less and had a worse attitude.