For students at South, the annual fall, winter and spring sports assemblies are more than just simple school assemblies; they have been a tradition for longer than most can remember, according to junior and varsity soccer player Grace Diehl. After hearing they were going to be replaced with spirit days, Diehl created a petition to bring back the sports assemblies where 1,455 athletes, students, and alumni responded, according to Diehl and South administrators.

Josh Koo, assistant principal of student activities, said that sports assemblies have brought South together for a long time, allowing athletes to be recognized for all their hard work throughout the school year. Koo said they are an important factor of instilling a sense of school pride in everyone. However, the administrators found themselves questioning if the assemblies included all students, Principal Dr. Lauren Fagel said. This sparked the idea of replacing sports assemblies with spirit days, where school merchandise would flood the hallways and every activity would celebrate, according to Fagel.

“We’re highlighting athletes [at sports assemblies] and we’re highlighting students in the arts [through performances],” Fagel said. “What about our students who are in all the numerous different activities we have?”

Because students were unhappy with the change, Diehl decided to take action and start a petition in an attempt to bring attention to the issue.

“I wanted to raise awareness of the assemblies being canceled, and having them back was a perk,” Diehl said.

Diehl started a petition on Change.org and spread it through social media, receiving over 1,400 signatures from both students and alumni. When starting this petition, she had more than just herself and her varsity soccer team in mind- she wanted the incoming freshmen to get the same experience she has had.

“It is important for freshmen to see what varsity sports are like, for athletes to celebrate accomplishments, and for TV kids to reflect school spirit” Diehl stressed.

Once sports assemblies came back into circulation, the idea of spirit days took a backseat, according to Diehl.

“I’m really appreciative of Dr. Fagel being receptive to the students and being willing to make a change, and I think it will be really positive because this is an important tradition” Diehl expressed.

*Malyka Abbas, Brady Blais, Lily Christophersen, Betsy Jarosick, Maggie Jortberg, Skylar Kreske, Lauren Lee, Caroline Lo, Charlie Mihelic, Caroline Ohlandt and Emily Pavlik