The annual rosecutting ceremony takes place Tuesday, May 14 at 7 p.m. in the auditorium, making it the 89 celebration. The tradition is the oldest activity the school has to offer for seniors.
Rosecutting began in 1935 in the old building. The school wished to do something sentimental to seniors at the end of the year, making it a long-standing tradition of the school.
The ceremony involves students holding a rose tied to a maroon ribbon to represent the long-standing maroon line that binds the senior class together, while a slideshow plays showcasing all the memories during the school year. The finale involves every senior cutting the ribbon to represent their ties ending within the Farmer line.
However, a concern over the past couple of years is the decline in ticket sales due to a lack of student interest. With this, promotion for the tradition is something being considered.
“We’re trying to push it a little more because a lot of seniors might not understand the meaning behind it,” senior class president Tiara Rebollar said. “We have a couple of people signed up, but I feel we could push it a little bit more to where there’s more people. We usually have about 100 people who attend.”
Something unfamiliar to the minds of students is the meaning behind the event. Student council advisor, Bernette Lindamood said there’s more to the ceremony than students realize.
“I think it’s a tradition that needs to be continued because of the value and idea that there’s change coming and [seniors] will have to cut ties with [their] community,” Lindamood said. “It symbolizes the change that’s coming for seniors, as it’s the last time they’ll be with their peers before they go off into the world.”
Oftentimes, seniors attend the event for the opportunity to express their sentiment with their classmates.
“It’s one of the last times [students] can see everybody else in their class, and there’s a lot of photos [from the slideshow] that allows students to share a moment with each other before graduation,” senior school service officer Aurora Monkman-Lou said. “It’s really cute, emotional, and I feel like everyone should try this when they’re a senior.”
For seniors, the ceremony gives the graduating class one last chance to connect with their peers before graduation.
“It’s exciting, yet bittersweet seeing everyone grow up and knowing it’s one of the last events we get to experience together,” Rebollar said. “It’s upsetting, yet it makes me happy to see everyone getting ready to move on.”
The event is different from other senior activities because of the various emotions involved and how it formally closes the senior class each year.
“You finally get to take a pause and [at the event], it finally sinks in [to seniors] a little deeper, that this is it,” Rebollar said. “This is the event that makes seniors realize it’s time to move on.”
