Thirteen months ago, I called out my own peers.
By writing an article about the lackluster attendance our student body had in the student section last year, I addressed the fact that we could be doing a better job of having more school spirit and pride.
Since publishing that article in December of 2023, students have done a better job of going to games, but certain issues have still not been fixed.
The consistent lack of guys in our student section is proof of how certain influences on our generation have had a negative impact.
There are many things competing for our attention, especially phones and social media, which still seems to be the number one issue regarding low attendance at games.
While some may dismiss the fact that social media’s existence can lead to low attendance at a football game, one cannot deny the fact that students my age are addicted to it.
Whether it’s Snapchat, Instagram, or some other platform, it seems as if there’s always something grabbing the attention of high school students.
This is the same attention that could be used to support one’s fellow classmates. However, the current culture in place is one in which students are not required or expected to go to a game to cheer on their brothers. Some guys would rather stay home and occupy their boredom by staring at a screen for long periods of time or just make the excuse that because they live far away they don’t need to go.
It wasn’t always like that, though.
“Just from talking to my dad, I know that there used to be ten to fifteen priests here at one time,” said Student Body President Christos Dimas. “He told me that they would enforce guys to go the games, and if they saw you the next day but didn’t see you at the game, you would be called out for it.”
Nowadays, it would be very unlikely for an MC student to be scolded by a Carmelite for not attending a basketball game on a Friday night.
Times have changed, and so has the culture surrounding MC’s brotherhood and school spirit.
“There’s nothing more Mount Carmel than at the end of a close game when it’s clear we’re not going to win, then seeing our guys slink out of the gym before it’s over, even if the game is still up for grabs,” said Mr. KC Perlberg. “There’s this social anxiety from students in which you can hitch your wagon to a team and feel good when they win, but that means you also have to stand up when they lose. Watching fans not even show up in the first place or also flood out of a gym even when the game is still yet to be decided is a culture that should get changed as well.”
Something that’s changed in the past year since I wrote that article is that participation in school activities and student sections has been encouraged more often.
When Dimas and his running mate Marty Mann ran for student body president and vice president last spring, they made it very clear to the student body that one of the most important goals for their campaign would be to improve morale and school spirit.
Posts on MC’s official social media accounts, fundraisers through buying t-shirts, weekly dress down days, flyers around the school, consistent updates about dates and times for games through PA announcements, and making a new official student government Instagram account are all ways in which Dimas and Mann have encouraged students to show up at games.
However, encouragement can only go so far.
In order to change the culture currently in place, perhaps more than just the members of Student Council need to tell others to go to games.
“I don’t think we should leave it to just Student Council,” said junior Ryland Supergeci. “I think the players on a team want their friends there just as much as the student council wants to see a student section.”
If anything has become more precedent over the past year, it’s that student council and words of encouragement can only go so far. In order to have consistent and energetic student sections, everyone needs to lead by example.
Leading by example of course starts by first showing up to a game, but then also participating in chants and cheering on the guys who are playing.
There have been times over the past year in which students have led by example and showed up to games, but the next challenge is properly showing one’s enthusiasm when in the student section.
Personally, I remember being a freshman and listening to the seniors at the time carrying out organized chants.
That has not happened since.
“I try to go to as many games as I can,” said senior Dale Twine. “But once I’m actually there I’ve noticed that guys can lack in school spirit at times. We don’t do chants anymore, and even if it’s a close game some guys will just sit down and go on their phones.”
This once again feeds into the culture issue that lingers over the student section. It’s hard to get guys to show up, and it can be even harder for them to buy in once they’re there.
“When we played [Saint] Laurence at home I was happy that guys showed up,” said Grant Best. “It shocked me though that their student section had some more energy than ours. Their team fed off of that which helped their team gain an advantage on us.”
This past year has seen some improvement for school spirit and attendance at our student sections, but there is still more work to be done.
“Kids think they’re too cool to not show up sometimes,” said Best. “Don’t be that way. Come support your school.”
