This year, instead of having the HOCO in the SC or dining hall, Kent changed the location of this party to John Gray Park ‘28 library. New Director of Student Activities Mr. Sam Ftorek came up with this idea with the help of Library Director Mrs. Voorhees. Everyone wants something different this year, so they believe the library is a better place for students to enjoy Homecoming: “We truly hope it might become a new tradition at Kent. The library space is for Revisit Days for prospective families and for all employees for a holiday party. It only seems fair that we also provide an opportunity for current students to use the beautiful space in a celebratory way as well as for more typical academic purposes.”

Homecoming is a traditional holiday, a winter dance, to celebrate the entering of Kent Spirit Week. “Because there is a dance show this week, we decided to do HOCO the week before,” said Gianna Espinosa ‘24, one of the Blue Key Heads.

The Blue Key Heads helped Dean Ftorek and Mrs. Voorhees arrange the whole event and decorate the library. Gianna shared: “Mr. Ftorek and Mrs. Voorhees did a great job of giving us the space we needed for our creativity.”

This year, the theme was “The Great Gatsby.” “There are so many themes to choose from, but I think The Great Gatsby is the most elegant one, and we want this exciting event to be the introduction of the whole year,” explained Gianna. She pointed out that it’s the last month of the Fall term, and everyone is tired, so the Blue Key Heads wish the Homecoming could be a super fun party for the whole school. “We want to ensure the theme this year is amplified so everyone can dress up and have fun,” Gianna said. For her, HOCO was special, impactful, and joyful. “There was something unique about it, and I heard no other dance was like that. Having it in the library is a good tradition to start at Kent. It was the first dance a lot of freshmen have been to, and I hope it impacted the student body,” Gianna said proudly.

During the preparation of HOCO, Gianna was thankful for all her support from the SC members. “Diamond Johnson, Robby Ober, Will Kirkiles – they are my rocks,” Gianna said. “Everyone was constantly there. Having this support group is great.”

For the upcoming Sadie Hawkins Dance, the Blue Key heads are thinking of a theme that is not too hard for everyone: “We are going to keep it as a surprise but we are very excited.”