The gym erupts in a sea of cheering faces; students and teachers alike decked out in a sea of school colors. The roar of stomping and clapping reaches a deafening pitch, reaching every corner of the gym. With microphones in hand and excitement at a peak, KHS Spirit Week officially starts. 

The 2025 KHS Spirit Week is approaching, and behind it all, there is one person to thank: the student council advisor. The current advisor is Elena DeStories, who has taken charge of Spirit Week in the last two years. The student council executive board and DeStories work in the summer and first marking period to align the week with homecoming, plan the events for each day, and correspond themes to the events. 

A week of pep rally activities does not happen easily; it takes teamwork and coordination. Executive Board Public Relations Ambassador Jacaline Lally says, “It takes a lot of planning and preparation before all the spirit week events are even a thought.” Planning an event for a large crowd takes many key components, like communication, time, brainstorming, and contributions from students and faculty involved, Lally added. 

According to DeStories, communication is the foundation of planning any school event. She says, “To make up events for spirit week, it takes a lot of student involvement, organization, and communication.”

An aspect of planning is scheduling around future events, such as conflicting holidays or teacher conventions. Executive Board Co-Vice President Courtney Darlington says, “We have to figure out the correct timing, the schedule, and much more, and that is why it takes so long to figure out what we need to do.”

Communication is not only crucial between the executive board but also between other important staff members, such as the administration and the janitorial staff. Executive Board President Samantha Ferretti says, “It is not only [the executive board] that has to plan it. It has to go through the administration, which creates the schedules, the janitors who have to get things and set up the gyms, and we have to find people to help run it.”

Many students believe that the KHS Spirit Week is unlike any other dress-up week in other New Jersey high schools; claiming it is different, fun, and exciting, with events to include every student. DeStories says, “I think it’s very important and critical for our school; being here and compared to some other schools I’ve worked at, the sense of community across this student body is really impressive.”

Looking ahead, the executive board plans to extend Spirit Week throughout the year to keep school spirit high. DeStories says, “This year, we’re planning on doing a fall, winter, and spring pep rally, and we are also looking to have another spirit week in the spring to keep the school spirit up throughout the year.”

Popular events during the highly anticipated week include Quiz Bowl, Karaoke, the Dig Pink game, Spirit Spots, the spirit dance, Color Day, Band Day, hallway decorating, banner decorating, and finally, the homecoming game on Friday night.

DeStories urges kids to engage whenever a pep rally or spirit event occurs, “It’s really important that people participate and have fun during these events,” she said.