CoronaVirus Can’t Stop West Jefferson’s School Spirit

By: GRACE S.

West Jefferson High School’s Renaissance Club hosted a Virtual Spirit Week the week of March 30th - April 3rd, 2020. The high school’s students and teachers sent in photos of themselves to the Renaissance Club’s Instagram (@riderrenaissance) and Twitter (@WjRenaissance) pages.

West Jefferson High School, like every other Ohio school, is temporarily closed until May 1st at the earliest due to COVID-19. Members of the Renaissance Club took it upon themselves to spread some school spirit even though students and teachers alike must stay six feet apart. They did not disappoint.

Each day of the week had a different theme. Monday was Hat Day, Tuesday was Family Day, Wednesday was Hobby Day, Thursday was Siblings Day, and Friday was Brown and Gold Day. Lots of teacher posts garnered attention from the student population. 10th grade teacher, Ms. Simmons, showed off her quilting skills for Hobby Day. Media Center specialist, Mrs. Kearns, decorated cookies with her children for Family Day. Computer teacher, Mrs. Simmons, posted pictures with her little brother at various ages for Siblings Day.

If a student or teacher posted a photo to Instagram, the Renaissance Club added that picture to their story for the day. If a student or teacher posted a photo to Twitter, the Renaissance Club retweeted it. On their Instagram page, collections of photos from each day are saved.

At the beginning, the majority of the people who participated in this Virtual Spirit Week were members of the Renaissance Club and teachers. By the end of the week, more non-Renaissance students were sending in posts. The most popular days for showing school spirit seemed to be Siblings Day and Family Day.

The response for the week was overwhelmingly positive. Students and teachers commented how much they like it, how it helped build a sense of community, and how another Virtual Spirit Week should happen. Due to social distancing requirements, the Renaissance Club organized this event from their own homes and executed it, according to the people, magnificently.

What is the Renaissance Club? It is a student organization that focuses on making the school a better place by bringing students and teachers together. To get into the club, students must fill out an application, get letters of recommendation, and be selected by Mrs. Miller and Mr. Olson, the spearheads of the Renaissance Club. The 2019-2020 school year was the debut of the club, and boy, have they been busy. They have hosted quarterly school-wide rallies, promoted activities on their social media pages, and coordinated events, such as a bonfire in the fall and a tailgate during basketball season.

Nobody knows what the Renaissance Club will be up to next! Keep up to date by following them on Instagram (@riderrenaissance) and Twitter (@WjRenaissance).