After fears that Deck the Halls wouldn’t happen this year, PIHS students were reassured that it was here to stay. To do things a little differently this year, the Student Council implemented a pre-Deck the Halls door decorating competition for the first time.

Each homeroom class decorated their door with a theme of their choosing, and the winning door would decide the theme for their class’s hallway during Deck the Halls.

The general consensus seemed to be negative. “I thought door decorating was a good idea but it didn’t work out well. A lot of ideas were ignored for one theme,” said Jaden MacDonald ‘20.

Through a combination of misinformation and ignoring the rules, classes “rigged” their votes by deciding on just one theme and applying it to almost all their doors, in order to guarantee their hallway’s theme. “I was disappointed with how the junior and senior classes approached it,” said Whitten-Smith, art teacher and Student Council Winter Carnival adviser. “Without having different themes for each door, there was no real competition.”

After finishing their doors, the classes voted on the themes for their hall. The senior class decided on Harry Potter, the juniors got Carnival, sophomores had Mario Kart, and the freshmen voted on Walt Disney World.

This year, bad weather meant there was a snow day during the week of Deck the Halls. “It was difficult because we only had a little bit of time this year,” said Krista Williams ‘21. “Our class tried really hard, but missing a day was difficult.” Losing five hours of work put a damper on a lot of progress.

The judge’s decision crowned the seniors as the winners, with juniors, sophomores and freshmen finishing second, third and fourth, respectively. “In all my years of teaching, this is the first time I’ve agreed completely with the judges,” said Whitten-Smith. 

Winning Deck the Halls senior year leaves the students with good memories, and a bit of sadness. “Senior year is full of challenges, but Deck the Halls brings all the classes together and shows true teamwork,” said Megan Gardiner ‘20. “It’s something I’ll always remember and cherish.” 

The juniors were good sports, even though their biggest rivals are the senior students. “I think the seniors deserved it [the win],” said Jason Wilcox ‘21. “It’s okay that we got second place this year, as long as we win next year.” 

The current Winter Carnival standings have the seniors in the lead, with 355 points. The juniors trail them by just 25 at 330 total. The sophomores are 100 points behind the juniors, with 230 points. The freshman take up the rear with 145 points.

If you missed this year’s Halls, check out the photo gallery.