Homecoming 2025

The concept of homecoming has its roots in the early 19th century when it was first adopted by colleges and universities to as a way to welcome back alumni around a major athletic event. According to legend, the athletic director at the University of Missouri was looking for a way to boost attendance at the annual rivalry football game during the 1911 'Border War' contest with the University of Kansas. What better way to do so then inviting back alumni for a weekend celebration that included pep rallies, bon fires, and parades; all culminating in the big game? The model for the modern homecoming celebration was born. By the 1950s, it was ubiquitous in high schools all around the nation.

My relationship with homecoming over the years has been, well a bit complicated. Perhaps I'm a bit stubborn but as illustrated above, homecoming at its roots was about the alumni. Factor in the consideration that at one time, what had been a weekend celebration has morphed into a weeklong interruption to the normal and regular operation of the institution. The potential for chaos keeps me awake at night! One may think a day of dressing a certain way is pretty benign, but perhaps a visit to the kindergarten wing during 'dress like your teacher day' might be a good way to test that theory! I know, I know. I'm a fun hater, right? Hold on a moment, I did say this was complicated!

On one hand it is critically important that we never lose sight of the primary purpose we exist. To that end, we strive to make every moment count and ensure that instructional time-those minutes we use to educate the youth of our community are not wasted. I remind our staff at the beginning of each year of the enormous responsibility they carry and the job they must do-and the fact they have 180 days in which to do it. 

Yet, the other side of the same coin would remind us that while the work we do is incredibly important, there is no prohibition in having fun while doing it! Many times in this missive I have extolled the virtues of the American public school system while drawing comparisons with our counterparts in other countries. Where those systems do not include robust activity programs (art, music, athletics), ours does. Indeed, homecoming is a uniquely American experience and one that, in spite of my 'complicated relationship' am proud to celebrate.

What had at one time been a gimmick to pack the stands a rivalry football game has evolved into something much more. Homecoming does still have that element of welcoming home our alumni. But now, it is about school and community pride. In the final analysis perhaps now, [more so] that really is the nexus of what this thing we call homecoming is all about. After all, the first thing most people see when they are approaching the gateway view of our small Iowa town is a water tower emblazoned with the Pirate logo. We wear navy and white because we are proud not just of our school, but we are proud of where we are from. We wear navy and white because we are inspired by the accomplishments of our students. We are proud of what they are able to achieve in the classroom and on the field of play. We are appreciative and satisfied when we hear the stories of our students who have set examples that, at one time were nurtured and cultivated within our own halls, and now serve as an inspiration for those who follow in their footsteps.

In my view, Homecoming 2025 was a tremendous success. Not just because of the huge upset win at the game on Friday night, but also the spirit, joy, and excitement the week brought to our students and community. The annual chili supper at the fire station. The pep rallies. The homecoming dance. The game. And yes, the dress up days. Thanks to everyone who worked so hard in planning the week!

Recapturing The Spirit of Youth

My first bicycle was a Christmas present from my grandparents. I was a little guy, probably not much more that 3 or 4 years old. It was a tan colored Huffy with a banana seat. I learned to ride in the backyard on the farm, and once I had it figured out I was zipping all over the place. Watching my next door neighbor (a four year old in his own right) find his balance with his dad running along behind him a few weeks ago really took me back. After a few falls he finally got the hang of it, and then there was no stopping him. In my own mind I was cheering him along with his parents. 

At the time we lived on a gravel road and there was no stopping me either. I discovered if I ran my bike in the tracks cars made down the lane it worked out pretty well. We only lived about a half mile from a creek so that quickly became a favorite destination for me. Oftentimes with a fishing pole strapped to my back! Before long, I had graduated up to a 10 speed. Once I had that bike it felt like I had achieved true freedom, especially when my buddies and I would ride from Clemons to State Center. That was where all the action was and a round trip of 14 miles on a county black top was a breeze for a group of preteen boys. In those days, riding a bike was not really considered a leisure activity. No, it was our primary form of transportation. 

But something else happened during those preteen years that inevitably retired my bicycle to the back of the garage under a layer of dust: A '65 Chevelle. Black with red interior, it was really a nice car (and really too much car for a novice driver of my experience and maturity). Yep, once I turned 16 my mode of transportation became 4 wheels instead of 2. Heck, in those days one could fill up the tank for $10 and drive forever. Where the joy of riding my bike as a youngster had at one time been my preferred (albeit only) mode of getting from point 'A' to point 'B', it was now something that was for 'kids'. 

From that point forward, I didn't really ride a bike anymore. Heck I didn't even need a bike anymore! Although there was that stunt some college buddies and I pulled when we decided to ride RAGBRAI in our early twenties. We were young and fit, so certainly didn't need to train for the ride, right? Wrong! Anyway, serious bike riding was a thing of the past and something relegated to children. 

But then...

A handful of years ago, the district won a grant that outfitted our PE department with a classroom set of bicycles. What probably began as a novelty has now grown into a full unit of study in grades 7-12. With our school district ideally situated on a comprehensive trail network, it really fit nicely into our curriculum. Not too long after getting the bikes, one of the high school students asked me if I'd like to try a bike. This was in the controlled environment of the high school auxiliary gym, so I jumped on and pedaled across the gym. For what it's worth the saying is true, 'just like riding a bike'. Nevertheless, it brought back some of those feelings of nostalgia and youth. But not to the point of spurring me to action. 

The last couple of years have found us pretty close to home, without many adventures or the traveling that we have been accustomed to. I had started walking a few years back as a form of 'exercise', but it just wasn't providing the results that I thought it should. It didn't take too long before I was looking for something else to do. I needed a new hobby! I thought back to that quick ride I took across the gym and thought, why not? So, I went out and got a bike. I started slowly, a ride from home to my office and back was a few miles. Before I knew it, I was able to do a 20 mile ride without any discomfort. 

Now, this post isn't about me picking up a new hobby. No, its about instilling in our students a lifelong love of learning and living a healthy lifestyle. It's relatively easy to go to work each day, come home, turn on the television and fall asleep in my recliner. Then dragging myself off to bed before waking up the next day to do it all over again. As I have come to realize over the last few years, we all need to live each day to the fullest. There is, and should be, much more to life than work. Hopefully this new hobby can be an example to our youngsters. 

From a macro standpoint, I drive home the point that elementary school is about teaching kids to read and secondary school is about helping kids figure out what they want to do when they leave our care. Painting with broad strokes that most certainly is true. But when you consider the totality of a public school experience there is a whole lot more to it. It is about fine arts and experiencing the beauty of the world through music, theatre, and drama. It is also about healthy living, taking care of ourselves, and experiencing the joy of leisure activity. So when the opportunity came up for me to go on a bike ride with our 8th graders last week I jumped at the chance. Not only was it a chance to enjoy an afternoon outdoors, it also allowed me to model the very type of activity that can hopefully lead to healthy living and a lifetime of exercise and enjoyment. While riding with the students, I asked several if they had bikes at home and if they rode them. Not surprisingly, most of them responded the same way that I did at their age. They may have them now; but they were mostly looking forward to retiring their bikes for cars. 

I totally understand the sentiment. However, I hope that in addition to learning those core pillars mentioned above, they retain and aspire to a lifestyle of healthy living and quality leisure time. Yes, they will certainly get to their destination faster in a car, but a bike ride will enable them to enjoy a quieter time. And hopefully 20 or 30 years from now, they will be able to jump on a bike and remember what it was like to be a kid!