Student government reveals Denim and Diamonds winter dance

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The student government winter dance will be on Feb. 11 from 8pm to 11pm inside Hoover Gymnasium, and all high school students are invited to attend. The winter dance is a hallmark event in the life of the high school, and many students look forward to attending it each year. Director of Alumni Giving and peer leadership teacher Shelley Noble says, “The winter dance brings joy and light to a cold and dreary season of the school year.”

The theme of this year’s dance, Denim & Diamonds, was announced at the Monday morning meeting on Jan. 9 by student government. The members of student government participated in a fashion show and danced to the song “Cotton Eye Joe” to reveal the new theme and provide ideas for dress. The Monday Morning meeting was planned by a team led by senior Freddie Reinhard.

Junior Kate Stolle says, “I love announcing the new theme at Monday morning meeting because we always do a fun dance or skit that goes along with the theme to get the student body excited.”

The theme combines the western and rodeo aspects of “denim” with the glitz and glam of “diamonds.” Members of student government began planning the winter dance and decided on the final theme in mid-November.

Junior Reese Cadogan says, “The theme of Denim & Diamonds for winter dance had been talked about by members of student government since the beginning of the school year, and everyone ended up really liking it since the decorations and outfits could match the theme.”

In the past, the winter dance has rotated from being dance mainly because it is indoors as opposed to being outside on the endcap of the football field. Krehmeyer says, “We’ve settled on the location of Hoover Gym for the winter dance because we like how close the parking lot is in case the dance is cold, windy, or rainy.” Student government plans to shrink the dance floor inside of Hoover this year to make the dance floor feel morcrowded and to connect the students more with the DJ. will be a new DJ at the winter dance.

The winter dance is important because it gives students another chance to dress up, have fun, and dance with friends. Sophomore Max Perry says, “I’m excited for this year’s winter dance because I’m looking forward to having a new theme, and I love to dance with my friends.” Student government’s hope is that this year’s winter dance will be a way for the freshmen and sophomores to connect and build community within their grades. Krehmeyer says, “It’s especially important for the underclassmen to have a second dance in the school year because the juniors and seniors will have their prom in the spring.” a semi-formal dance like homecoming to years where it is a more themed-party. Student Activities Coordinator and social sciences teacher Brian Krehmeyer says, “The winter dance has a unique place in Wesleyan student life because from year to year it can either it can either take on a semi-formal feel or a costume party.”

This year, students are encouraged to dress in semi-formal “diamond” attire or more themed “denim” attire. Cadogan says, “The dance will still be semi-formal, but we are encouraging students to incorporate the theme into their outfits whether that is denim or diamonds.” Students could wear sparkly dresses, cowboy boots, flannels, or other items to incorporate the theme into their outfit.

Cadogan’s main role for the winter dance is to search for themed decorations for the dance. Cadogan says, “We are going to be incorporating both denim and diamond accents into the dance, and it will be a mix of western and ‘Great Gatsby’ type decorations.” Each year, student government comes to school the morning before the dance to set up the decorations and dance floor inside Hoover Gym.

The winter dance is different from the homecoming

Noble says, “The winter dance has more of an intimate feel than the homecoming dance because it is inside and smaller.” Lastly, the biggest difference between the homecoming and the winter dances this year is that there

Before COVID, the winter dance was mainly only an underclassmen event. But in the past couple of years, the senior classes have rallied around the dance with the underclassmen and have made it an event that energizes the entire high school. Noble says, “I think COVID was a reset for the winter dance on how to do things differently and bring a community feel back to the dance.”

Many students are excited for the new Denim & Diamonds winter dance theme, and student government continues to work to plan and make this year’s winter dance the best yet. Noble says, “The winter dance is an opportunity for all high school students to be in one place celebrating each other and having fun.” The winter dance is one of the most fun events in Wesleyan student life each year.