Last Friday the Student Council hosted its “Kick off Pep-Rally,” and brought a new atmosphere of pep rallies to Olentangy. Student Council’s new adviser, Anna Gonzales, made a big splash by including lighting, a DJ booth and spirited decor. Gonzales’ choices made this a pep rally to remember. Staff members around the school said this was one of the best pep rallies they have seen in their years of being a teacher. None of this would have been possible if it were not for the fantastic team behind Gonzales. 

Student body President Taylor Worthington ’25 put the pep in the pep rally with the energy she brought.

“The best part of the pep rally was unplanned, but it happened because people were so hyped,” Worthington said.

Worthington put hours of dedication into this pep rally, but she was not alone. Students who were part of the council came to prepare posters and decorations. Not only did people come the week before the event, but the night before, almost 100 students came to set up decorations, light and sound. 

“My favorite part of the pep rally was everyone’s energy and that STUCO’s hard work paid off,” underclassmen, Julia Brown ‘27 said. 

Brown helped create the decorations and set up for the event, and she is proud of the overall outcome. 

Gonzales is the director of the OHS theater program, so she had connections that made the spirited pep rally possible. She had a team of light crew come and program lights with the theater’s technology. 

“Seeing everyone get into it during the pep rally” made it worth all those hours of work, Gonzales said. 

But the people who showed the most school pride were the admin and guidance counselor team, who performed the song “Bye, Bye, Bye” by NSYNC. This song has been a trend due to its recent appearance in the Deadpool and Wolverine films, and it was the perfect way to say “hi, hi, hi” to the 2024 school year. 

This pep rally changed the nature of rallies at Olentangy. Let’s see what the pep rally on Friday, Sept. 13 will be like!