At Communications High School (CHS), “Name Day” marked the halfway point of the 2024 Fall Spirit Week. Students were asked to dress as a character, thing or theme that starts with the same letter as their name.
The halls were filled with creative costumes, from A (Aquarium) to Z (Zombie), which earned each grade a full 20 points on theme participation.
The activity of the day was Make-A-Monster, with a controversial change. In previous years, the Make-A-monster competition focused on film, with each grade creating their own short movie and presenting it to the entire school.
This year, in an effort to level the playing field for underclassmen who don’t have as much experience in filmmaking, Make-A-Monster was taken a bit more literally. Each grade sent five students to participate in the event. Each group was given the same supplies, and 25 minutes to “make a monster,” complete with a name and backstory.
SGA President and senior, Phin Whedon of Wall Township, commented on the change.
“I think it’s going to be a really fun competition because it’s on the spot. It’s just really going to let people’s creativity shine through. It’s going to become more enjoyable to watch.”
Sophomore Ruby Febbo of Middletown, echoed this sentiment.
“[The new Make-A-Monster] is way better than those videos.”
On the other hand, some upperclassmen disliked the new system, including junior Austin Edouard of Ocean Township.
“I feel that it was done to make the other grades suffer,” he said.
Regardless of varying feelings on the matter, the change was proven to help give underclassmen a better chance, with the freshman class winning the challenge.
The freshman monster was centered around the classic “Monster Under the Bed.” A monster was built to be hiding under the table. The grade utilized a mix of items that had, according to the freshmen, been stolen from the humans living in the same house.
This victory allowed the freshmen to pull ahead and tie with the sophomores for third place at 88 points. The juniors bring up a close second at 100 points, with seniors leading at 110.
One thing is certain, CHS looks forward to seeing what the rest of the week brings.
