By the Hawk staff

The dress-up fun of Halloween came a little early to Hanover High this year as students celebrated Spirit Week and Homecoming Oct. 23-28. The five days of themes saw students in grass skirts and leis, red-white-and-blue, their brightest neon, construction vests and hard hats, and the shabby chic made popular by actor Adam Sandler. The pod decorating contest was won by the Jolly Juniors, who decked out the math wing for a visit from Santa. The Sleepy Seniors display in the social studies pod featured an array of photos showing students caught mid-nap. Sweet Sophomores turned the English wing into Candyland, and the freshmen transformed the world language pod into a fiesta. The Friday afternoon pep rally, organized by the Student Council and advisor Ms. Mathison, featured a thrilling performance by the competitive cheer team and epic games of tug-of-war.

Despite the football team playing an away game Friday night, a student section turned out to cheer a 42-13 win over North Quincy. The week culminated in a Homecoming dance Saturday with a cornhole tournament, photo booth and food donated by dozens of local restaurants. Senior class officers and advisors Mrs. Mann and Mrs. Corbett put on a great event. Before the night was through, the Homecoming King and Queen were announced: Marvin Felix and Kate Baldinelli.

The one negative of the week was controversy with students wanting to leave the Homecoming dance long before its scheduled end. As a result, administration plans to meet with class advisors and students in coming months to determine how to best hold that event in the future.