The Grady homecoming pep rally on Oct. 12 began with students shuffling in to the school’s football stadium and spreading to all corners of the bleachers. Assistant Principal David Propst then attempted to persuade students to move to their respective grade sections by yelling into the microphone, “You are wrong.” As teachers and faculty members worked to organize the student body before the program could begin, instructional coach and pep rally coordinator Brandi Sabb gestured to the stands and said, “See what I mean.”

The previous day, Sabb had described the process of organizing pep rallies in the stadium as a “logistical nightmare.”

Pep rallies used to be held in the school’s basketball gym. Last year, however, Grady’s student enrollment surpassed the capacity of the gym, and the location for pep rallies switched to the football stadium. As a result of both the increased student body and change of venue, Sabb said it has been difficult for her to coordinate a spirited, effective pep rally.

Sabb estimates the student population has increased by 300 students since pep rallies were held in the gym.

“It’s very hard to find events that engage and really capture the attention of almost 1,450 teenagers,” Sabb said.

Sabb described the first pep rally last year, the pioneer stadium pep rally, as a “disaster” because it was difficult for her to figure out how to format the program. Since then, however, Sabb has made improvements.

Before Oct. 12, Sabb outlined a list of the activities and presentations that would be made during the homecoming pep rally. Sabb set up tug-of-war competitions and relay races and reserved time for the marching band and cheerleader performances. While it is true that not every activity during the pep rally was carried out exactly according to this list—Sabb had intended to include a flag football competition that did not take place—senior Luke Paddock still believed the Oct. 12 pep rally was formatted fairly well.

“I thought it was organized okay, but there definitely could have been some improvements,” Paddock said. “But overall, I thought it was fun. … They did a good job of making sure everything was secure and safe. However, the organization was a little bit on the loose side.”

Sabb agrees it is difficult for the faculty to supervise students at stadium pep rallies and ensure they remain in the designated grade sections.

“It was a little bit easier when we were in the gym because that’s a confined space,” Sabb said. “The supervision was a little bit easier. It was more intimate, so it’s not as much space as the outside poses for distractions, but it’s just a logistical nightmare to get all 1,400 students in the stadium and entertain them.”

Supervision is not the only aspect of pep rallies that has suffered because of the change of venue. Because the stadium is a much larger space than the gym, Sabb said this takes away from the proximity of the students to the action. In the gym, the activities and performances were held directly in the middle of all the students. In the stadium, this is not the case since students are seated along only one side of the football stadium.

Junior Kylah Clark, a dancer who performed during the Oct. 12 pep rally, expressed her concern that all students in the stadium cannot see her or other students’ performances on the field.

“It should be in the gym,” Clark said. “You can’t see everybody in the stadium. It’s lame and boring.”

In addition, Paddock said the vast size of the stadium takes away from the energy of the environment.

“In the gym, it’s a lot more intense, due to the illusion that it’s more packed inside,” Paddock said. “Sounds reverberate off the walls. That can add to the intensity of the pep rally itself.”

Propst agreed there were several positive features to pep rallies in the gym that are now lost in the stadium.

“Everybody likes the gym,” Propst said. “Logistically we can’t do that.”

Because of the increased difficulties in holding pep rallies due to location and student population, Sabb decided to change how she would format pep rallies.

This year, Sabb is planning to have only one pep rally per semester, though in past years, there had been two during the fall semester. Sabb said this change was made to ensure both that cold weather would not be an issue and that all extracurricular activities and athletics would be recognized during the pep rallies.

Also, Sabb plans to have more activities available during stadium pep rallies. With the space available, Sabb intends to organize various games and competitions in order to capture all the interests of Grady’s diverse student body.

“Because there’s so many students and because there’s so many interests, there’s going to be a variation of things going on,” Sabb said. “We’re hoping that it’s a more enriched Grady spirited event, with a whole bunch of things going on.”