Pep rallies make comeback
Sophomore percussionist Ryan Jones poses and holds up a sign with other band students at an IHS event.
Independence High School (IHS) is officially hosting their first pep rally of the school year on August 27. The pep rally will include performances from cheer, the band, the Royals and other performing arts organizations as they celebrate the return of Knight’s football.
One of the main performances that highlight pep rallies at IHS includes the cheerleading team. The cheerleaders have been working hard to prepare for the upcoming football season, choreographing different dances and cheers to perform at sporting games and school events.
Cheerleading’s Chloe Ballentyne shared some of her favorite things about being on the cheer team.
“I love how we’re constantly working together and building each other up as a team,” said Ballentyne. “Especially when we’re stunting, we make sure to help each other up and make everything we do a team effort.”
This year students have the opportunity to attend live school events. Current FISD COVID-19 protocols provide opportunities for performing arts students to execute their skills in-person again.
Junior Varsity Cheer Coach Meredith Barnes, expresses how she feels about the upcoming season.
“I feel like we already have become closer. Not just physically, but emotionally closer as well,” she said. “We can do more group activities, and overall there’s a huge relief.”
Another performing arts group that has a significant presence at IHS pep rallies is the band. Their most popular song is the IHS fight song, which will be played at the pep rally as well.
Sophomore Ryan Jones, a percussionist in the band, details how they have been preparing for the upcoming pep rally on Friday.
“This week we are going to be having rehearsal time where we will work on our required songs for the performance, and make sure we are fully prepared to play,” said Jones. “A lot of the time when we are practicing in percussion we work on the cadences which just consists of percussionists only.”
Jones shares what type of performances he enjoys the most during the school year.
“The other band events I am most looking forward to are the football games,” he said. “ The stadium is always super spirited and lively so it is really fun to play at halftime and experience a Texas football game.”
Knight TV students will be live streaming the pep rally on Youtube for viewers who cannot attend or for those who would like to watch it virtually.
