Here at Shawnee High School, students are offered plenty of extra-curricular events at which they can interact and have fun with the Shawnee student body outside of a classroom environment. Such events include Renegames, senior prom, junior dinner dance, homecoming and the wing bowl. However, this year two of these after school events were missing: Blue and White Night and the Sophomore Cotillion.

For those of you who don’t know, Blue and White Night was an event in which all Shawnee students were divided into two teams — Blue or White depending on last name — and competed to win the most points. Students could also buy T-shirts emblazoned with the logo of the year’s theme.

Both events were plenty of fun and gave students memories that they wouldn’t soon forget. So, why were they absent this year? That is what I set out to learn, and from everything I have found, there is only one explanation: a lack of student participation.

According to Mr. Kevin Looney, a Shawnee guidance counselor who was kind enough to answer my questions regarding the event’s cancellation, the event cannot run without student participation.

Blue and White Night takes a lot of work to organize and run on the part of both students and teachers, and unless enough students are actively participating in or at the very least attending the festivities, then what’s the point in even running it? That is the question Mr. Looney and the other faculty members that run the event asked themselves when they decided to cancel the 2016 Blue and White Night last fall.

In a the same way, Sophomore Cotillion was cancelled last week due to poor ticket sales and lack of enthusiasm from students. This came as a shock to the students who had already pre-purchased their tickets when the announcement came of the event’s cancellation. Many of the students I have talked to have told me that they are disappointed because they were looking forward to spending the dance with their friends or with dates.

According to Mr. Looney, events like these hinge entirely on student participation. If a minimum turnout is not reached, then the event organizers have no other choice but to be cancel. 

So, is that it? Is this the end of both Blue and White Night and Cotillion forever? Fortunately, that answer is no. Mr. Looney has told me that he and the other organizers of Blue and White Night fully plan to revisit and revive the event next year, and the same can be said for Sophomore Cotillion.

However, it is important to stress that these events cannot happen unless student participation and turnout see improvements, and this applies to all events, including Renegames and Prom. So, the next time a school event comes rolling around, try to think how fun it could be instead of how lame it could be.