Stoughton High School celebrated the holidays with a winter-themed spirit week from Dec. 14-Dec. 20. Each day of the week had a different theme where students could submit their photos and win a prize. The themes were ugly sweaters, pajamas, snow forts, cookie decorating, and winter art.

The week-long event was organized by Student Senate. The faculty adviser, Kathleen Kasberg, says in an email, “The Student Senate hopes the winter week events will add some cheer and joy during this challenging year!”

With the odd year, Student Senate could not do their usual activities.

“Typically for Student Senate we have monthly activities. But that’s really difficult during this time. We just wanted a bigger activity that was just kind of fun, uplifting– not really serious, just to kind of keep things positive,” says Senate president, Elise Carter, a junior at SHS.

The main goal for the Senate with this activity is to create a fun experience for students and to do something that isn’t just school. The Student Senate, like all other groups, had to find a way to navigate these uncertain times and continue to meet.

Student Senate now collaborates and holds meetings through zoom.

“The students have done a tremendous job speaking up in the meetings or adding great ideas/suggestions in the chat,” Kasberg says. The group utilizes zoom polls and Google Forms to vote in the group.

Carter explains the details of how Senate plans events like the spirit week: “We’ll have a whole Senate meeting with all 60 of our members, and we’ll get their ideas, and then we’ll probably get a list of about ten [ideas] that we’ll vote on […] and then we have to send that to admin in a detailed email of everything that we’re going to do […] [to] approve it.”

The Senate then goes into the stage of creating posters and informing others.