So, it wasn’t that bad, right?  Wrong. It was amazing. This year, Academic Magnet hosted a truly Enchanted Night in our school gymnasium on February 3rd. The semi-formal dance lasted from 8pm to 10pm and invited students of all grade levels to come and enjoy the cool night in early February. Chaperoned by our lovely teachers, various faculty members and local police, the dance allowed students to enjoy some fun, non-academic based time on school grounds at the beginning of the third academic quarter. This was my last ever Semi-Formal dance; however, it was also my first and overall, I had a very good time. This year’s festivities truly make me regret not attending such events in prior years. In both times I have attended Academic Magnet dances, they were put together  well and well attended. 

Very importantly, you all need to stop being so awkward! While I am not the most social person in the world, I even got involved with others during the dance. I saw many students (namely the underclassmen) standing off to the side viewing the fun taking place. GET INVOLVED! Even if you do not particularly enjoy the music playing at the function, start moving. I guarantee that you will start feeling the music greater and have a better time, than standing still, talking to only people who you are familiar with. Dancing next to a stranger is an extremely freeing experience.

Anyways, back to the actual dance, we need to give a big thanks to Elliot Romero and the rest of the student council that was in charge of making the fun night possible. Finishing this issue in the senior lounge on Monday during study hall I decided to interview my fellow seniors within my nearby vicinity. That is where our student council president informed me that the school provided all those who attended the dance with over 1,600 chicken nuggets in addition to the other various food options. This came as a grand surprise for me because I was not even aware the school had provided food in the gymnasium lobby, that of which I had to walk through in order to get to the dance being held on the court floor. Nevertheless, it was an extremely generous offering that I was sadly unable to indulge in, most likely provided by the hard work of the Academic Magnet PIE organization. Within my various interviews conducted within a mere matter of minutes, I highlighted the view held by our graduating senior class. Hearing from this select group is important because we have been to most organized school functions of all the current students of Academic Magnet, and we know what to expect and what is well received by the general populace of high achieving and goal oriented students.

The one thing that all students agreed upon, was that the song “redrum” by 21 Savage, a popular British-American rapper, was surprisingly and utterly disappointing. This was especially shocking to me, due to the fact that it is frequently in my daily rotation of songs, similar to the iconic “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell (in reference to my personal senior spotlight feature in the 10th issue of the Talon). 

Hank Baer, stated that he spent seven whole minutes at the dance, and he liked nothing about the dance. In hindsight, interviewing Hank for any subject matter is a foolish idea. When asked if he enjoyed his time, Hank replied “No, it was trash.” How could one truly experience and give an account of all the festivities when he barely even attended. It sounds like his night was spent with his girlfriend with a side of Academic Magnet Semi-Formal. Possibly the only credible information he provided was that the dance had poor lighting. I for the most agree, as it was too bright and took away from the overall ambiance of a dance. He then returned to the Hank that we all know and love when he proceeded to say that he enjoyed the dance circle, that of which had already drastically dwindled as he arrived after my group had already left the function. Come on. He then proceeded to state that “There were a lot of randos” and rated the dance a 7.634 out of 10. Thank you for nothing Hank. I also saw Hank the following morning on my gas station run within Towne Centre and it was pretty funny.

I then wasted my time interviewing my friend Burton McCulley who waited until the end of our 5 minute interview (5 minutes long because she is unable to remain focused for even a second), to tell me that she did not even attend the dance because she was out of town visiting the University of Virginia. Just as helpful as Hank. Thank you. 

The other people I interviewed gave me boring responses so I am skipping to Beatty Cummings. Beatty said that he enjoyed the music played, possibly being better than the music played at prom. He then proceeded to say that the fashion exhibited were “non-flam.” Beatty Cummings, ladies and gentlemen. He then attempted to slander my name by stating the fact that I wore similar outfits to a Semi-Formal that occurred after the Academic Magnet dance, just as he did. I am unsure of what he was attempting to pull there. Despite that foolishness, he did state that there was a good student turnout, which was supported by the statistics, as this year’s semi-formal was the highest grossing Semi-Formal ever hosted at Academic Magnet. 

Advice from a senior gearing towards the end of my high school career, I would strongly advise to take advantage and attend as many school events as possible. Following the return of more traditional school following the coronavirus pandemic in the 2022-2023 school year we have been able to experience many of the luxuries that the students of Magnet past loved to talk about. My time at Academic Magnet dramatically improved throughout my junior and senior years as I began participating within the school community, attending soccer, basketball, and football games, dressing up for spirit week and of course attending Semi-Formal and both years possible of attending Prom.