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The on-campus homecoming: timeless or outdated?

While many students lean toward the off-campus extravaganzas, some parents and educators worry about events getting out of hand.

By MEGAN VOELLER
Published October 20, 2006

For Armwood High School parent Margo Valenti, the traditional on-campus homecoming dance has timeless appeal.

She relishes being involved in all aspects of the weekend event, from watching her son play in the homecoming football game to helping decorate the cafeteria for the school dance.

"I know it sounds old-fashioned, but I think it can be simple and fun for them," she said.

On campus or off? When it comes to homecoming dances, it's a debate-provoking question.

While some parents and administrators see benefits to sticking with the traditional school dance, students sometimes envy their peers at schools like Newsome High School, which held its event at Tampa's Museum of Science and Industry in September. On Saturday night, Durant High School takes over part of the Florida State Fairgrounds.

Valenti and her husband, Peter, say they've seen the downside of off-campus events. Both are active in Ybor City's Italian Club, a popular venue for homecoming dances.

"When you get them off campus in that kind of environment, especially Ybor City, a lot of kids just go wild. They think it's a time to go wild because they don't have the containment of the school and everyone they're used to seeing," Peter Valenti said. "And you can't pin it on any particular school. I've seen them all do it."

Armwood junior Morgan Sellers can't muster quite as much enthusiasm as the Valentis for an on-campus dance.

"It's alright. They spend a lot on decorations. It looks nice, but I'd rather have it somewhere different. You'd like to go somewhere else and be different," she said.

Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Tampa tops her list of ideal locations, but the Florida Aquarium would be okay, too.

Is bigger better?

At Brandon High School, where the Oct. 13 event was held on campus, assistant principal Johnny Bush says an outside location can raise expectations substantially.

"There's a sense that you have to outdo the year before," he said.

He sees on-campus dances as part of a vanishing tradition.

"We've gotten away from everything being on campus. Graduation used to be on the football field," he said.

For Bush, sticking with a tradition is worth minor inconveniences, such as rerouting 300 students who took the SAT the morning after homecoming from the cafeteria to classrooms.

At Riverview High School, assistant principal Kevin Massena says the school's homecoming dance this Saturday is being held off campus for a simple reason: space.

"A thousand kids at a dance just aren't going to get into any facility we have here," he said. At Riverview, which has never had a homecoming dance on campus, the tradition is to hold it elsewhere.

Location is everything

Choosing the right spot can be a challenge. In the past, students complained that a dance at the University of South Florida's Marshall Center was too far away. So this year, the school chose Hillsborough County Community College's Plant City campus, a 30-minute drive from Riverview.

When going off campus, security becomes a top concern, Massena said.

"We try to find a place where there is one entrance and one exit. ... Then we have deputies and all of our administrative staff working plus chaperones."

At Bloomingdale High School, where the dance is held on campus, assistant principal Danielle Shotwell lists student involvement as one of the most compelling reasons to host at home.

Students take charge

Planning and executing the event becomes a leadership activity for members of the student government, she said. In May, the students pick a date and a theme for the dance. Then they work until October to realize their vision within budget.

This year, Bloomingdale's student government managed to keep ticket prices for the Oct. 28 event to $15.

At Armwood, where elaborate decorations have included a volcano sculpture and a lighted dance floor in the past, the price of a ticket to the Oct. 28 on-campus dance is twice as much.

That has some students thinking they could be getting more for their dollar.

For $30, a more exotic location might be preferable, said sophomore William Lawson. "They decorate it, but it's still the cafeteria. It's still where you eat lunch every day."

[Last modified October 19, 2006, 08:05:21]