As we have moved further into the new year, it’s been great to see so many familiar activities revamped for our new pandemic life. Given that two of the biggest ASB events have just recently taken place, The Nexus would like to thank ASB students and school administrators for their efforts to make this school year as normal and socially fulfilling as possible. 

To be able to look around campus and find standard school spirit activities going on, where we had once been unsure that coming back was feasible, is truly gratifying. The occasional music during Friday lunches, the return of the Black Hole, and all of the other events that we’re looking forward to this year all speak to the assuredness of our return to campus. Homecoming week and the recent junior Unity Days are both welcome returns to the social camaraderie of an in-person school environment, a feeling many of us missed when we were at home. Even more so, the fact that there are Homecoming events for people of every predilection feels like a thoughtful and conscious effort; artists could partake in float-building, sports fans can come out and support the football game, and student performers can participate in the pep rally. Now more than ever, The Nexus appreciates the variety of options for socialization that ASB and school administrators have provided for the student body. 

New events as well, like the field lunches for upperclassmen, have also been a great way to revitalize connections lost during the pandemic. What many of us have missed most about school are the opportunities to talk to our classmates in a casual setting, and school-sanctioned activities have always been a social connector.

These events have also been a lifeline for students struggling to assimilate into in-person learning. While it has been hard for some students to adjust to new positions and responsibilities, efforts to ease this transition have made things less daunting, especially for underclassmen, many of whom are still getting used to being on Westview’s campus.

For juniors, as well, the opportunity to partake in Unity Day is especially thoughtful, since it was skipped over last year because of the pandemic. We understand that the timing of the event so that it takes place before the sophomore Unity Day, and thus the week directly before Homecoming was a difficult thing to pull off. Above all, The Nexus appreciates the administrative effort to give all grades attention and care after such a traumatic year. 

After such a wonderful start, we would love to see more opportunities like these later in the year. In the future, it would be great if we could continue to find opportunities for students to gather and bond. Activities like dodgeball tournaments and more frequent versions of the freshman football tailgate come to mind.