A Friday passing period at Woodgrove is not complete without the soft sound of a well-known tune airing through the hallways. The Friday hallway music, a staple of pre-weekend excitement for many years now, is receiving a huge transformation in its layout and leadership this year. With the school inching towards its 15th year of operation, and the installment of an entirely new PA system, it was well overdue for a makeover.
In the time the hallway music has existed at Woodgrove, it has evolved and adapted with each class of students. The project initially began around nine years ago, when Student Council Association members pitched the idea of playing popular songs during passing periods every Friday. Mr. Jeff Schutte, who was the SCA advisor at the time, facilitated the training and management of the SCA members who took on the role of playing the music each week. After leaving that position six years ago and becoming the Student Activities and Engagement Coordinator, he still notices how the music leaves a positive mark on students in their day-to-day lives. “I’m in the hallway during change of class sometimes, and kids are singing the songs,” Schutte shared, “I think it’s a good positive Friday thing to do.”
After the Class of 2024 said their final goodbyes in June of this year, the job of the hallway-music-player was left vacant. The SCA landed on a few students, including senior and SCA Vice President Rory Schriver, to fill the position. Schriver has been involved in SCA for so long that “it just felt natural” for her to step up senior year.
Schriver is not only new to the role, but is also taking on the task of learning the inner workings of Woodgrove’s new PA system. In previous years, those in charge of the music would have to punch in a code on an office phone, then connect a smartphone to an aux cord that would broadcast the music throughout the school. However, if an announcement were to go over the PA system at the same time, the music would end abruptly. “We would cross our fingers every Friday and just hope it all worked,” Schutte remarked. After ending the music, the same code would have to be punched into the phone again to disconnect from the audio system. All of this would take place between class blocks in a small closet off of the library’s Makerspace.
Now, with the arrival of a new PA and clock system, the process is much simpler. It only requires a small cord that allows for the music to play over the school. This can all be done from the centrally-located main office.
With all of these updates to the old system, the original excitement of the hallway music remains the same. Students can still expect to hear “Monster Mash” in the fall and “Winter Wonderland” come December. Themed days, such as “2000s pop,” a personal favorite of Schriver, are still very much within this year’s plans. “I would walk through the hallways on a Friday, and I don’t know about everybody else, but I would be singing them,” Schriver said of the upbeat song choices. In continuing the beloved traditions of years past, SCA is also considering bringing back the Friday song choices as a reward for Spirit Plate winners, where a DenTime from the winning class would be able to choose all of the songs played on a given Friday. The changes being made to the hallway music and the resurgence of old traditions this year will aim to reflect the spirit and character of Woodgrove’s lively student body.