Students debate Friendship Dance details

Sam Klein
Podcast Editor

Homecoming is the event of the fall for most American high schools; however, Webster and Kirkwood have a different take. The Friendship Dance tradition continues this year at 7-10 p.m. on Nov. 5, at Kirkwood High School.

The dance has been going on for decades but took a two-year hiatus due to COVID.
In 2020 the dance was canceled all together, and last year the two schools held separate dances, so this year there was talk over if returning to tradition was the best way to go.

Webster took a vote that came out as 49% for a solo WGHS homecoming, 47% for joint Friendship Dance, and 3% didn’t respond. It was decided that the small difference in percentage wasn’t enough to change a decades long tradition so dramatically.

Junior Sydney Arrandale said,“I think we should continue the tradition because like, why break it? And we’ll just get it back at Webster in the future anyways. And you get to meet new people from Kirkwood.”

Junior Janya Johnson also commented on the debate, “I was surprised when thoughts came up about people not wanting to do it with Kirkwood. I don’t have a problem with it.”

Johnson also talked about how she was excited to have it at Kirkwood and see what the other kids are like and how the two schools will interact at the dance.
Senior Dimion Butcher has a different opinion. “I just think that we should have had our own thing, with our own like friends and our own community. I don’t really know anyone from Kirkwood, I don’t know the school, so I feel like it would really be as like fun.“

Along with the debate over continuing tradition, other talk about the Friendship Dance has been the preparation students make beforehand: deciding on going with friends or a date, deciding on dresses, and other plans for getting ready and for after the dance.

Arrandale said she’s had a vague idea of what her plans are since the beginning of the school year, but nothing is set in stone whereas junior Mia Willis said she will start planning during the second to last week of October.

The last debate that circles the school every year is whether it’s better to go to the dance with friends or with a date. It’s a personal preference.

Arrandale said, “I think with friends because you’re like with people that you’re really comfortable with and all that.”

Willis and Johnson both stated that they have fun going with friends, but going with a date would be fun as well.

Tickets to the dance are $10 and will be available until Nov. 3, at 11:59 p.m. To enter the dance students must have a valid ID and be dressed in semi-formal attire.

Students can also invite students from other schools after filling out the Outside Guest Information Form. There will only be 75 of those tickets available.