With the sun rising over the stands of Ray Skillman Stadium, members of the class of 2026 raised their donuts in celebration for the new school year ahead.
This event, known as Senior Sunrise, is a more recent tradition which has emerged for each new senior class. Planned by members of the PTO and senior class officers, the event had approximately 400 students attend.
Ella Jansing, Student Council President of the Class of 2026, was one of the students who planned the event.
“Earlier this summer I received an email from last year’s class president which explained what some of the more popular and well-attended senior events were, and Senior Sunrise and Senior Sunset were on that list,” Jansing said. “We definitely made it a priority to make sure that Senior Sunrise was an event that students wanted to attend knowing that they’d have a good time. Since July we’ve worked with Student Council and the PTO to make sure we could reserve the field for the event and get all of the decor and catering figured out.”
This morning before school, dozens of seniors pulled into the parking lot at 6:45am. After entering the stadium, students were greeted with Chick-n-minis catered from Chick-Fil-A, donuts from local businesses, and bowls of fresh fruit. After assembling their plates, students huddled up with friends on top of picnic blankets to chat and watch the sun rise.
“Senior Sunrise was a great experience,” senior Alex Frank said. “Getting to relax and watch the sun come up with my friends made the morning really memorable. I’m glad the tradition is still going. It was a really cool way to kick off our senior year.”
One trendy item which consistently reappeared throughout the event was senior jeans, a clothing item which has been popularized through Instagram and TikTok. Using old or thrifted jeans, students painted phrases like “SENIOR” and “2026” onto their pant legs in vibrant colors, shapes and patterns.
“I wanted to make senior jeans because it just seemed like a super cute and fun tradition, and a lot of my friends were making them too,” senior Audrey Johnston said.
From enjoying catered Chick-Fil-A to sporting colorful senior spirit wear, together the new senior class celebrated a memorable start to their final year of high school.
