Homecoming princesses study the yearbook to assist in their selection of the crown bearer and flower girl at a meeting Monday. Madalyn Gathright and Tyler Pitts were voted on by the girls to perform the tasks at homecoming in January.
AMBER ROLLAND – Hoof Prints Staff
For the past two years, she wore an elegant gown and walked arm-in-arm with a boy basketball player. Later this year, she will wear her basketball jersey and follow her fellow teammates in a single file line onto the court. Surprisingly, she doesn’t resent the change.
For the past two years, Rachel Goldammer has delightfully accepted a boy basketball player’s invitation to walk with him in homecoming and has had to go dress shopping at a formal store. However, she, along with a handful of other girls, will not be wearing a dress in the homecoming ceremony because of a change in homecoming policy made last semester by student council.
In a nutshell, the current homecoming rules are exactly the same as the ones first implemented by our high school student council for the very first homecoming, with one exception. Back then, the queen didn’t have to be a senior. Last year student council voted to make several changes to the homecoming rules.
Rather than having one girl in a formal dress for each boy basketball member on the floor and no recognition for the girls’ basketball team and cheer squad, this year there will only be nine girls wearing gowns – the princesses elected by their respective grade. The princesses will be escorted by a boy basketball player of their choosing, and the remainder of the boy basketball players will walk out single file in uniform as a team, along with the remaining girl basketball players and cheerleaders, though they will be announced individually. Basically, if you’re not voted by your classmates, you’re not wearing a dress.
As with everything, this change has had both supporters and protesters. For the most part the girls who usually walk in homecoming as maids seem to like the new homecoming rules. Rachel Goldammer supports the change because it allows the princesses, girl basketball players, and cheerleaders to be recognized along with the boy basketball players.
“I think it’s good that the girl basketball players and cheerleaders will get the recognition that they deserve, along with the princesses,” she said. “People in the audience will be able to tell who the princesses are.”
Some of the former maids have even gone so far as to suggest that another change be made to allow the princesses to pick anyone to escort them, whether it be a male high school student not on the boys’ basketball team or their father. This is an idea that Student Council began considering last year but so far has not been implemented in the homecoming rules.
Naysayers of the change so far have said that the idea is “stupid,” but none have spoken up to explain why they dislike the new homecoming rules. The majority of this group are current or former members of the boys’ basketball team.
Junior baseball player Mark Stone argued that, if inclusion of more athletic teams is one of the goals of the change, then student council has missed the mark.
“They’re leaving out baseball, softball, golf, and track,” he said.
No matter the protests or agreements, the homecoming rules for this year are set. The motion to change the homecoming policy was passed by a majority in Student Council. Students outside of the Council were allowed to express their opinions through a survey taken last year before the change was made.
While complaints and opinions about the homecoming rules would have no effect on this year’s homecoming because it’s already been set, debate and suggestions concerning next year’s homecoming ceremony are still in the works. Members know it’s inevitable that if any changes are made, there will be grievances against them next year because where good ideas go, controversy is sure to follow.
