Four-year member of Solon’s Student Council and current co-President Zoey Xie has spent a good portion of her high school career brainstorming Homecoming. But not just who she’s going with or what she’s doing afterwards. She, along with her fellow executive board members, generates and directs each year’s set up, decorations and theme. Find out more about the behind-the-scenes of Homecoming in the interview below.

Q: How does STUCO go about deciding on a homecoming theme?

A: Normally towards the end of the year, around spring—this year we did it in May—the executive board will come together and brainstorm themes and think [about] what would be fun, what would be feasible to execute. Then, once we have a list of around five or six themes, we’ll create a short description of what the vibe would [be], what decorations we would want to have for that specific theme. Then, once we have those short blurbs, we’ll email [them] to Ms. Short for approval. Once she approves the five themes, we create a Google Form that has the themes and their descriptions, and then we send that out to the school.

Q: How does STUCO work with Solon High School staff to execute the theme of choice? Do you work with anyone else in the building [other than Ms. Short] to get everything set up?

A: There’s a DJ that we have every year at Homecoming, and not only does he do the music, but he’ll also help us a lot with the decorations. We have people who will make sketches of what we want the space, [the gym and pool lobby], to look like and we’ll have a meeting with him—we actually just had our meeting with him yesterday. He has lots of materials, lots of equipment, and he has backdrops for us. We do the more detailed, intricate stuff.

Q: How long does it take to set up Homecoming?

A: We separate it into two blocks. We have a morning block and an afternoon block. We’ll have the group of executive board members— it’s not only executive board members, we also have volunteers who are just part of the STUCO general assembly, and sometimes we have NHS volunteers come help us, and they’re always a big help—we have half of the group go on the morning blocks—normally from 8 a.m. to noon—and then, in the afternoon, [the other half will work from] noon to 3 p.m. We try to get most of the work done in the morning, but the DJ doesn’t come until the afternoon, and we need him there [to finish].

Q: What decorations are specifically setting this year’s Homecoming apart?

A: The theme is called “Viva Las Vegas,” so we’re going to have a lot of neon signs. The color theme is mostly black, silver and purple. We’re also going to have big dice, and… a lot of playing cards and poker playing tables. We’re going for a poker theme, but no one will be playing poker, obviously.

Q: What’s your favorite part about putting all of this together?

A: Honestly, my favorite part is just being there with the STUCO members. Obviously, I like seeing the outcome and how the decorations look, but I think the most fun part about decorating is just being there. It’s honestly bonding the whole time because we’re all laughing [and] struggling together.

In conclusion, Solon High School’s annual Homecoming wouldn’t be possible without the efforts taken by the Student Council. The members work within themselves and with others to get the ideas out into the student body and get everything set up before the night begins, all while, as said by Zoey Xie, enjoying quality time together.