At the crack of dawn, on Aug. 12, approximately 70 students from the class of 2022 gathered at Centennial Park to watch the sunrise before their final year as high schoolers. The students reached the park at 6:00 a.m. and took photos and ate donuts together while the sun came up. 

The senior student council members planned the new event, the idea coming from other schools that hosted similar senior sunrises or sunsets activities. According to student body president senior Caleb Koontz, the sunrise should have been scheduled later in the morning but other than that it went well. 

“We got there at six, and the sun did not rise until like an hour after that,” Koontz said. “We should have gotten there later but it was good to start off the year together since it is the last year we are able to do that.”

Senior class president, senior Katie McMullin, additionally helped to plan the sunrise. McMullin was impressed that so many seniors got up for the sunrise and were not unhappy to be awake that early in the morning. 

“The best part was that we all got to get together for one of the last times and no one complained which was very impressive,” McMullin said. “I think it is really important to make these memories especially because it is our last year and we [on student council] thought everyone would enjoy the activity.”

One idea that McMullin had was to do a sunrise at the start of the school year and a sunset at the end of the year. Both Koontz and McMullin agreed that a sunset might have a better turn out but thought that the sunrise made more sense for the start of the year. 

“Typically when you do the sunrise you also do the sunset at the end of the year to symbolize the whole beginning to end of the school year,” McMullin said. “But I do think more people will show up for the sunset because it is later.”

Both students agreed that the sunrise is a tradition that younger classes should continue. McMullin said that the sunrise had a different feel than just being at school because there were no teachers and it really started to sink in that all of the students’ final year of high school was starting. Koontz thinks that the sunrise is a good way to bring together as many students as possible before their last year begins. 

“I think it would be a good tradition to start since it is the last year and everyone has been together for so long,” Koontz said. “Starting one day early with them is a good way to start off the year.”