Rolling up the red carpet: A recap of the 2022 Homecoming Dance

By Bridget Galibois, Junior Editor-in-Chief

This article was initially published in the October 2022 print edition.

Students enjoyed this year’s homecoming dance, which was planned by Student Government.

On the first night of October 2022, Payton students and their guests were excited to attend the annual homecoming dance. Frances Dinh ‘26 said that she enjoyed attending and thought it was a “great experience.”

In the weeks leading up to homecoming, students voted on a “red carpet” theme and Student Government planned for the event. “The photo booth was cool this year and I liked the red carpet decorations,” said Sophie Gettleman ‘24. “The theme felt more together [than last year] in terms of decorations.” Gettleman also enjoyed the “high energy” of the dance.

Dinh agreed, saying that the DJ “chose songs that everyone liked and was able to get everyone dancing!”

Homecoming was planned by Payton’s Student Government. “When planning these large, 1,000-student social functions, we had to revolve much of our planning around Covid safety to organize a memorable and eventful night. Planning for Homecoming started months in advance, and so when we started planning in June and July, [and] we heavily relied on feedback from last year’s dance to provide the best experience this year,” said Junior Class Chair Anoushka Lal ‘24.

Student Government stayed approximately six hours after school the Friday before to prepare for the dance, which Lal called a “great bonding experience that set our spirits high for the day of!”

There were some complications in planning the event, however. CPS policy mandated which vendors Student Government could buy food and decorations from, limiting Student Government to Amazon and Costco, where they bought “everything from soda to streamers.”

Students enjoyed the pizza and snacks, in addition to the “mocktails” that Student Government members prepared as a part of the red carpet theme. Lal added that Payton’s Homecoming caused Costco’s pizza to be sold out for the night.

Additionally, the fire alarm got pulled at the beginning of the dance, disrupting the check-in process. Members of Student Government helped out and took extra shifts to make up for the time lost, and Lal praised them for their “effort and flexibility.”

Lal also expressed thanks for Payton staff, saying that “this couldn’t have been done without the help of more than thirty parent volunteers, FOP dessert donations, the security team, and our custodians! Of course, when we plan Homecoming for next year, we will aim to make it better than our last. But I truly think that this year’s success serves as a model for future functions to come!”