Lila Epstein ’10
Co-Editor-in-Chief

On Sept. 28, Principal John Dodig made an announcement  reproaching the behavior of students who were drunk at  the homecoming football game and suggested that the tradition of homecoming might not continue.

“When I know, with confidence, that drinking among a LARGE number of students WILL take place at the Homecoming Day game, why should I continue to support it,” Dodig wrote in an e-mail to parents.

Dodig emphasized that he does not want to cancel homecoming and there were many other options to consider, such as having parents monitor their children more carefully, breathalyzing students, or having a contact, similar to the one that seniors sign before prom about not drinking, be applicable to all school events. However, he still made it clear that a change in student conduct is necessary.

“If I am going to represent you on the sidelines of a game I expect that I will not have to be embarrassed by boorish behavior from fans. That I will not have to field phone calls the next day from adults in attendance telling me how terrible my students behaved,” Dodig said in an interview.

Senior Thoughts

Some seniors who heard the announcement were disappointed that there might not be a homecoming because they consider it an important part of senior year.

“It’s been a tradition for so many years it would be a terrible thing to see end,” Austin Mills ’10 said.

Max Stampa-Brown ’10 agrees that the homecoming football game was an enjoyable experience.

“It was definitely worth the anticipation, I had a wonderful time from the motorcade to the end of the game, regardless of the happenings around me,” Stampa-Brown said. “Incredibly energetic and overall a really fun day, I consider it a fond memory at this point; I believe other people do too.”

However, not all students were able to have the exciting homecoming experience they had been anticipating.

“I was hoping to actually make it to the game and remember most of it. Neither of those happened,” Monika Goldschmidt ’10 said. “I also never thought I’d be the one in the hospital or having EMS and administrators checking on me in the field house bathroom.”

However, Goldschmidt does not believe that her experience should encourage the cancellation of homecoming.

“I am not proud of what happened but I do sincerely hope that future classes learn from my mistakes and the other girls who experienced the same issues I did,” Goldschmidt said. “In order to continue our school spirit, we need to keep big games like homecoming – it’s one of the few games that the entire school attends.”

Junior Thoughts

Many juniors are concerned that they will not be able to have the experience of a homecoming game their senior year due to behavior this year.

The cancellation would also be a disappointment to the players on the football team who would never get to play in a homecoming game.

“Homecoming means everything to a football player. The most important thing is the crowd. The crowd makes the game exciting and eventful,” said football player Rob Gau ’11. “If there was no homecoming next year I would feel extremely let down.”

Football player Chris Coyne ’11 agrees that the homecoming game is unique because of the size and spirit of the crowd.

“I can speak for the rest of the team when I say that there is nothing that pumps us up more than seeing hundreds of our friends in the stands cheering for every play,” Coyne said.

Thoughts on Pre-Gaming

While Dodig emphasized the dangers of drinking, some students did not believe that the pre-gaming was incredibly problematic.

“I don’t think people under the influence should be kept from the game. It’s fun, harmless and a lot the cheering and support comes from them, as long as they aren’t too drunk, getting sick, passing out or falling off bleachers,” Joyce Liu ’11 said.

However, others believed that their intoxicated classmates detracted from the homecoming experience.

“No one wants wasted people ruining their day,” said Zach Slater ’11. “It’s sad to see people passed out at school; they should have to stay home.”

Some students are concerned that the class of 2010 is taking the blame for the behavior at homecoming and they do not want to be responsible for the cancellation of the tradition.

“The magnitude of our messiness, was no greater than years past. Each year, homecoming has been the ideal time to be exactly what we are, rowdy teenagers, and why are we going to make fools of ourselves,” Stampa-Brown said. “We’re kids, some of us went overboard, too many for the community to handle obviously, doesn’t mean we’re the messiest senior class in the history of staples thus far.”

Dodig’s View

of the Senior Class

Dodig does not want students of the class of 2010 to think that he thinks less of them.

“I love the members of this class and admire their devotion to excellence and their contribution to making Staples a comfortable place to learn and work,” Dodig said.

“All who were intoxicated were not seniors but the preponderance of the poor behavior did come from seniors. I can’t imagine a repeat performance at some other event. My respect and my personal feelings for the senior class have not changed,” he added.

Dodig plans to bring up homecoming as a topic of discussion at PTA coffees. He also plans to consult with students, teachers and administrators to decide what changes will be necessary for Homecoming 2010.