DeBakey’s Fall Pep Rally

DeBakey is an unconventional school, where aspiring medical professionals are arguably more focused on schoolwork than school sports. Although there is no football team, there is a cheer team, which recently coordinated with DeBakey’s Student Council and teacher volunteers to organize a pep rally in the gym. The pep rally was held to congratulate students on the end of the first grading period and excite them about the upcoming Back-to-School dance later on in the evening. 

DeBakey Juniors matching in their class t-shirts. From left to right: Beatrix Gnemi, Sana Gangopadhyay, Isabelle Chan, and Caleb Daranikone (Photo: Hailey Hua)

To promote class pride, students were encouraged to wear their class colors: bright yellow for freshmen, green for sophomores, light purple for juniors, and red for seniors. In every school hallway, students were dressed in their class colors, along with other matching accessories and even colored body paint.

DeBakey Juniors show their pride by wearing purple. From left to right: Chiagozie Nwokoro, Malak Mehaisi, Nahla Allaham, and Jude Zareef. (Photo: Hailey Hua)

At the pep rally’s start, Student Council members from each of the classes riled up the student population, by challenging each class to make as much commotion as they could. Cheering, combined with screaming and stomping filled the gym’s atmosphere as students began to buzz as one collective being. 

The DeBakey Cheer Team sets up before their performance. (Photo: Hailey Hua)

Next up was a very talented, captivating dance routine performed by the DeBakey cheer team, followed up with a performance that included volunteer teachers. Soon after, cheerleaders chose student volunteers from the crowd to represent their class as they competed against others: Freshmen were pitted against Sophomores while Juniors competed against Seniors.

The competition was fierce, as all chosen students were determined to win for their class. Students battled against one another in a game of musical chairs, with music produced by the Music as Medicine orchestra, followed by a wrap-the-teacher-like-a-mummy game. After much contention, the freshmen and seniors won the mummy game, while the sophomores and juniors won musical chairs.

DeBakey Seniors cover Ms. Penny in toilet paper as part of the mummy game (Photo: Hailey Hua)

After the pep rally, students filed out of the gym filled to the brim with excitement and spirit for their class and DeBakey as a whole. Until the end of the school day, the talk of the town was on the highly successful pep rally. In the future, the DeBakey Student Council hopes to partner with the cheer team and orchestra, along with other clubs, to organize more events that foster a more positive, uplifting community.