On a Friday afternoon that felt like fall, hundreds of Cherokee Trail High School students gathered at Legacy Stadium to celebrate what it means to be part of the Cougar community.
“C-H-E-R-O-K-DOUBLE-E, We are Cherokee!” screamed the CTHS cheerleaders as they held up signs and executed daring lifts and stunts.
So began a beloved tradition at CT, the homecoming pep assembly.
“CT is really a community where you don’t have to be afraid to show your school spirit, show what you’re proud of,” said Ben Reichert, a senior and member of student leadership. “At this assembly we try to represent all of our teams, all of our clubs, and I think that’s what makes it such a successful event.”
“We really want to bring all the classes together,” added Logan Blair, a senior class representative who helped organize the assembly. “I think this is a great first event for the freshmen specifically. We really want to show them what school spirit is all about and get them in the mood to participate for the rest of the year.”
The high-energy event featured performances by the CTHS pep band, the Unified cheer squad, the Cougar pom team, and a perennial favorite, the boys pom group. They performed in shorts and crop tops as the crowd went wild.
Each class – freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors – sat together in the stands, decked out in t-shirts or overalls that highlighted their graduation year or class name. For example, the senior class (2024) is the Class of Magic. The juniors (2025) are the Class of Change. Sophomores (2026) make up the Class of Strength, and freshman (2027) are the Class of Treasure.
There was plenty of inter-class competition, with Principal Jean Incitti leading a cheer and chant contest, a student-led scavenger hunt in the stands, and a contest where each class tried to fly the most paper airplanes into a designated landing zone.
“It’s fun to be in competition between the classes,” junior Madison Ginsburg said. “We did pretty well. We ragged on the freshman a lot,” she added with a smile.
The one solemn moment in the assembly came when Activities Director Michael James gave the students a heartfelt reminder to take care of each other and be safe during all the homecoming festivities.
“I want to see you back here on Monday morning,” he said.
Then it was back to building the homecoming hype before the big game that night, and the dance on Saturday night. Many CTHS students say homecoming is the best week of the school year.
“The whole experience is really fun, but being able to do it with your friends is what makes it worth it,” Madison Ginsburg said.
“It brings us together,” added her twin sister, Olivia.
“I still love going with my friends and being part of the community and seeing all the hype around homecoming week,” junior Avery Potter said. “It’s just really special.”
Posted 10/10/2023.
