South’s Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA) hosted a Winter Wonderland dance Dec. 2 for the first time in ten years. GSA members invited all South students as well as GSA clubs from surrounding schools.

According to GSA co-president Lia Knight, 102 people attended the dance between 7 and 10 p.m., and a majority of those students came from other schools.

“It’s basically to show that we’re an open environment and everyone’s welcome,” she said.

Senior Christine Kausal has never been to a GSA meeting, but heard about the dance through Knight.

“[The club presidents] made an announcement that this is the first GSA dance in ten years, […] I wish they had done this all the other years,” Kausal said. “I definitely think we should do it more often […] I think everyone’s having fun, so why would you want to restrict that?”

Ryan Schmidt, GSA dance attendee from a different high school, said that no matter where the dance attendees came from, the event allowed for a welcoming atmosphere.

“[The dance was] a nice way to see other people and get to know them […] and have fun with them,” Schmidt said. “It’s a great way for other people who don’t feel comfortable with themselves to come to a dance to meet other people like them.”

GSA sponsor Cheryl Hope saw the dance as a way for students—both who were GSA members and who were not—to bond and get to know each other.

“I think the kids love it,” Hope said. “They’re having fun and it’s a great thing, they’re having a good time and it’s sort of a camaraderie amongst kids who have similar interests.”

Admission to the dance was $5 and according to dance chaperone John Knight all the proceeds will benefit Pride Youth, a Chicago-based organization that allows LGBTQ teens to meet other students and share their stories.

Although Schmidt said his school sponsors a GSA club, those GSA members are not allowed to host dances or other activities.

“This is just cool that [South] allows GSA to do this, unlike [my] high school, where [its GSA club] can’t do anything like this,” Schmidt said. “It’s good to see that other schools are more accepting.”

Confirming Schmidt’s opinion of South’s accepting nature, GSA sponsor Cheryl Hope said her only role in the dance was to encourage GSA members to reach their goal.

“The kids in [GSA] just wanted a dance, and they [saw] that other schools had these dances. There was a Halloween dance and there was a fall dance and there was a Valentine’s dance, so they wanted to have a winter dance,” Hope said. “I would love it if there could be a dance every year, it would be great […]. Really, this stuff comes from the students who are in the club. I sit back and say, ‘Yes, of course you can.’”

Mr. Knight explained that even though the dance was named a GSA dance, the dance ideally could exist without a specific title.

“[The dance] should be the whole school,” Knight said. “It is [hosted by] Gay-Straight Alliance, [but] it shouldn’t even have a label.”

According to Knight, GSA believed that a turnout of 50 people at the dance would be a success, and since they surpassed their goal, the club hopes to host more dances in the future.