CHS9 Sadie Hawkins dance creates lasting bonds between students

Anvita Bondada, Staff Writer

 

As CHS9 students walk through the gym entrance, they are welcomed with strobing lights, blaring music, and a tropical vacation theme. 

The CHS9 Sadie Hawkins dance was held on Friday, hosted by the CHS9 Student Council. A Sadie Hawkins dance is characterized by girls primarily asking boys to go with them.

“I brought up the idea of a Sadie Hawkins dance because some of my friends from other states told me about theirs.” Student Council member Joel Abraham said. “We wanted to do some sort of event, so I thought a Sadie Hawkins dance would be unique and interesting.”

The Sadie Hawkins dance also took on a tropical luau theme, and was called the “CHS9 Family Vacation Dance,” It had elements such as sunglasses, leis, a tropical themed photo booth, and beach balls. Popular songs ranging from “You Belong With Me” to “Cupid Shuffle” played from the speakers as students danced and sang along.

“The first thing you think of when you think of a vacation is like a tropical beach, so we thought this would be a fun theme that would get people excited for summer,” Student Council member Medha Kanamarlapudi said. 

The Sadie Hawkins dance was the first ever dance exclusively at CHS9. Wanting to create a fun memorable event that freshmen will remember fondly, the Student Council worked tirelessly to make it possible. 

“It was a lot of sitting in meetings, and finding ideas for what the dance would be like,” Student Council member Lindsay Yoo said. “We didn’t want a plain dance, where everyone would be pressured to bring a date, and dance all the time. We wanted people to feel comfortable to bring their friends, and play games and take pictures.”

The Sadie Hawkins dance also strove to create a family bonding experience amongst the class of 2026. 

“There haven’t been a lot of activities that have promoted community at CHS9, so our Student Council wanted to look for ways to bring this year’s students closer together,” CHS9 Principal Dr. Cody Koontz said.

CHS9 students appreciated the diversity in activities and games at the dance. Activities ranged from basketball in the small gym, balloon darts, bean bag toss, cup pong and more.

“I think the activities are what made the dance really fun,” freshman Priti Bhandari said. “I like that there are a lot of things for people to do collaboratively because it helps with the family aspect.”

CHS9 students are optimistic about the idea of having a CHS9 dance again, and appreciated the bonding opportunity the Sadie Hawkins dance brought. 

“It is completely the choice of the future CHS9 Student Council Officers for if they want to continue the dance,” Student Council sponsor Erin Begle said. “I think it was successful, so I’m all for it if they want to do it.”

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