On Wednesday, Sept. 27, SCA held its annual hallway decorating contest, in which the four classes competed to make the most detailed and appealing hallway based on their class theme. 

The overall theme of Homecoming Week was “Game Night,” and each class was given a board game as the theme for their hallway. The freshmen were assigned “Monopoly,” the sophomores were charged with the “Game of Life,” the juniors were designated “Clue,” and the seniors chose “Candyland.”

The competition was fierce, and, with pressure mounting to see who could create the best-looking hallway, classes had to think of ways to outdo their opponents. “We’ve been doing this for three years now, and we have the experience under our belt, but we also have really great advisors who will help us,” senior Naomi Cowan said. “We also have the ability to drive wherever we want, which really does aid us over anyone else. We can leave and come back, and it gives us an advantage.”

In second place winning 15 spirit points, were the freshmen, who were tasked with decorating the 1500s (science) hallway, which was also the longest of all the hallways. This didn’t deter them, though, as they showed up with more students than any other class, and their more-than-determined class sponsors were committed to winning. “We have a momentous task ahead of us, but the freshman class is going to rally together to get it done,” Spanish teacher Brandon Chambers said. “It is [hard]; it took a lot of planning for the students to segment their sections, but they’re going to get it done.”

Their pure determination paid off in the end when they won second place, regardless of the stigma against underclassmen, particularly when it comes to spirit week. “The freshman class is ruthless; they’re more energetic and more fired up this year than any other class,” Chambers said. “Take a chance on the class of 2027.”

The sophomores came in last place,winning five spirit points, but still put up a valiant fight with their “Game of Life” inspired hallway. Economy teacher Howard Goldberg, also the sophomore class sponsor, laid the foundations and path for how they would approach decorating their hallway. “It looks like they have a good plan; hopefully we [can create] a nice replica of the board with the famed spinner,” Goldberg said. 

The juniors, who won the competition,gaining 25 spirit points, were extremely prepared with supplies and a motive to win, especially since they won the competition the year before.  “We have two years of experience on two of the grades, and we’ve done this before,” junior Patrick O’Banion said. 

Their theme, “Clue,” required intricate designs and attention to detail, especially to bring out the essence of the “murder mystery” from the classic board game. “[Behind] the doors, we’re doing the front of the mansion to ‘Clue,’ and then every single locker [section] are the rooms inside the mansion,” junior Davina Thongprasert said.

Third place was awarded to the seniors, who won 10 spirit points. Assigned to the board game “Candyland,” their colorful sections and fun designs still put up a formidable contest against all of the classes. 

Despite their previous losses over the years, the seniors persevered with better planning and great leadership. “I feel like in the past years, we’ve had very [many] failed attempts, and we’re trying to come into this with a positive mindset; we have a plan, which makes us feel a little bit better and more confident,” Cowan said.

All of the classes’ efforts led them to create great hallways for everyone to see, and for their classmates to be proud of.  “I’m not worried too much about the competition, but I’m worried about doing a good job and making the sophomore class proud,” Goldberg said. “Hopefully, everyone has a good time doing it.”

Gallery • 7 Photos

Bhargav Kuniki

Senior Claire Wood sketches a giant King Candy poster on a taped-together canvas. This was one of the two character posters from the game; the other was Mr. Mint from the Peppermint Forest.