Tuesday, April 26 marked the official start of Poly Prep’s Spring Spirit Week. The theme? Bring Anything But a Backpack Day. In the days leading up to Anything But a Backpack Day, there was a lot of excitement amongst students. Many wanted to use the day as an excuse to not bring their school supplies and avoid work in class. On the morning of, I was excitedly trying to fit all my essential supplies into my tote bag, but quickly ran into a major problem — it was too small. After taking my many highlighters, history binder, and a book I was planning on returning to the library out of my bag, I was finally packed for the day. 

When I got on my bus, I was surprised to see that not many people had participated in the themed day. Once I arrived on campus, the pattern continued. In Commons, for example, I noticed that most of the students around me had brought their backpacks to school.

Sophomore Iliana Borges did not join in on Anything But a Backpack Day. When asked why she and many other Poly kids were using their ordinary bags, she stated that she felt that “it was a waste of a spirit day.” She then mentioned that with all the classes that Poly students take and the textbooks and folders that may come along with those classes, it didn’t make sense for her to participate. 

Sophomore Chantal Guthrie was looking forward to taking part in Anything but a Backpack Day, but felt “very rushed” that morning. She planned on using a comforter storage bag to hold all of her materials, but ended up not participating. 

Sophomore Lea Glass participated in Tuesday’s festivities and used her sister’s toy car to hold her supplies. When asked if the car was more convenient than her regular backpack, Glass replied,“absolutely not.” She expressed that if more people participated, the spirit day would have been more exciting. Senior MJ Allers participated by using a pot to hold all of his supplies. When asked, sophomore Nyjah Harris gave this spirit day an “8/10.” To her, it would have been better if more people took part in it.

The consensus among everyone I spoke with was that location made it more difficult for students to participate in the theme. Guthrie said that “because of where we are in New York, I don’t think people can really [get] as wacky as th

ey wanted to.” She described the objects that high schoolers on TikTok have brought to their schools in other, more accessible areas. She recalls seeing students with canoes, trash cans, and even wagons. When travel

ing by school bus or car, as most Poly students do, bringing large items like these isn’t practical . When comparing Anything but a Backpack Day to some of the other spirit days like Pajama Day or Poly Spirit Day, this one takes far more work and planning than just putting on a piece of Poly merch.

Sophomore Hazel Budker, who brought a cooler to school, put it best when she said that “people at this school need more spirit.” Despite the lower turn

out than some of the other spirit days, it’s great for Poly to branch out and try new ways to keep everyone excited by school spirit.