On Friday, Aug. 8th, McKinley High School kicked off the new school year with the Welcome Back Assembly in the gym. New teachers, counselors, administrators and coaches were introduced to the school community and returning staff shared words of encouragement. The cheer team brought energy with a spirited performance, followed by a showcase of new McKinley merchandise for everyone to check out.
Students and teachers participated in competitions including musical chairs, where Ms. Naks emerged victorious. The juniors won a class-level competition against seniors, freshmen and sophomores. The competition was a single event made up of multiple challenges, including hula hoop dancing, riding scooter boards, and teamwork activities.
The assembly marked the start of the school year and allowed the McKinley community to show their Tiger spirit.
Daphne Nicole Gonzales (℅ ‘27) said the assembly was nice and she felt good to be back with familiar faces as well as new ones who bring new energy.
“There’s a lot of energy going on and that’s really showing tiger pride.” Gonzales said.
Gonzales said she was not expecting the juniors to beat the seniors during the assembly. “But it’s good that we won and yeah, it was fun,” she said.
Gonzales said what stood out to her was the singing of Black and Gold and the alma mater as a whole school.
“I feel like that shows a lot of spirit in us,” she said.
Isaac Garcia (℅ ‘28) said that the assembly had a cheerful mood and it was fun.
Garcia participated in the class relay competition representing the sophomore class which he said was fun although he said, “I feel like we could have done better.”
Garcia said the juniors did really well this year, as they beat the seniors. “Their teamwork was pretty crazy,” he said.
Garcia said what stood out to him was how hard the student body government and the band worked for this assembly.
Kayla Siarot (℅ ‘26) also participated in the Pentathlon game during musical chairs, volunteering herself to be apart of the games when they needed people to play.
“I recommended for the freshmen and sophomores [to volunteer for the games] so they can experience how it feels to be on the court,” Siarot said.
During the game of musical chairs, Siarot said she felt pressured when she was one of the last students standing. Despite it, Siarot said she had lots of fun. Even though the seniors placed second place and the juniors won, Sairot said she felt disappointed but felt like they did their best.
“Especially those who volunteered for our section. We tried our best. That’s what matters,” Sairot said.
Kaiden Hiwatashi (℅ ‘26) who watched from the bleachers, said that it was great to be back while also being able to see the incoming freshmen and other grade levels.
“It feels a little weird sitting in the senior section,” Hiwatashi said.
Cazrina Asuncion (℅ ‘29), was part of the band during the welcome back assembly and she said that that it was really welcoming.
“I like getting to know more about what we do,” Asuncion said.
Asuncion said that the class games made her feel competitive with all the cheering for their class.
Lorence Dumalan (℅ ‘26) was also apart of the band during the assembly placing the alto sax.
“It felt good playing Still Fly. It felt like I was in the HBCU band,” Dumalan said.
Dumalan said that he was surprised at how large the freshmen class was compared to the junior class; the class of 2027 being one of the smallest classes so far.
“The junior class looked very sparse and separated while the freshman class looked densely condensed into one spot,” Dumalan said.
Dumalan said that the games like the relay race were well planned, but there were some moments that the soccer ball came towards the band and almost hit one of their instruments.
Hiwatashi said he enjoyed the energy the other classes brought, from the cheering to the competitive spirit. When it came to juniors winning, Hiwatashi said that he expected it since from what he has seen, the class of 2027 is a very competitive class. Hiwatashi said students should be involved with the school this year while also joining the upcoming dance and chant during homecoming week, which will be from Sep. 29 to Oct. 3.
“The one thing that you would regret is not participating at all,” Hiwatashi said.
