With nearly three thousand students attending main campus, few students actually attend pep rallies. At each pep rally, the Arena is less than half full of students wanting to support the Farmerettes, band, cheerleaders and football team. With the team earning a historic record of 4-1 this season, students have a responsibility to show their appreciation for the effort the team puts into each game.

The Farmerettes and cheerleaders work tirelessly preparing routines to perform for the student body each week at pep rallies. The football players go out on Friday nights and still give their time to attend pep rallies. The band spends countless hours rehearsing before and after school. Each of these groups deserve the respect and appreciation of the student body.

Students are not the only cause of the low attendance at pep rallies, though; the separate campuses are also to blame. If freshmen and sophomores were able to attend pep rallies, the empty stands would fill up and the audience would be more engaged. The district could provide transportation for underclassmen to attend the pep rallies so a boost in school spirit and morale would be seen.

In the district, Lewisville is the only school with several campuses spread out across town. Marcus, Flower Mound and Hebron all have ninth grade centers, but the centers are located in the same parking lot as the school itself. Harmon and Killough, however, are roughly an eight-minute drive from Main. This puts the school at a disadvantage when it comes to having all grade levels involved in school traditions such as pep rallies.

Maintaining the tradition of Farmer Pride is important because the students of today will soon join the long maroon line and become part of the legacy of the school. With such a proud group of alumni, students need to realize why Farmer Pride is emphasized by the administration.

Additionally, students often do not attend pep rallies because they are not required to go. Because pep rallies are held at the end of the school day, students have the option to simply leave and go home 30 minutes early instead of going to support the school.

In other schools, pep rally attendance is higher because the entire student body is able to attend. The ease of access which comes with having a pep rally during the school day would raise the amount of students in attendance and would improve school spirit overall. Additionally, having three campuses spread throughout the city harms the school’s ability to have genuine enthusiasm for school spirit and true Farmer Pride.