As an all-girls school, Agnes Irwin naturally lacks the traditional high school homecoming football game and subsequent semi-formal dance. And, while it may not be possible — at least for the time being — to initiate a celebratory/symbolic football game at AIS, many still desired to address this deficit and provide a piece of the stereotypical “high school experience”. Thus came the birth of Agnes Irwin’s Fall Ball. Piloted in 2022, my freshman year, this homecoming-like autumnal evening pledges excitement and celebration. It lasts from 7 pm until 9 pm, though people are allowed to depart at 8:30, half an hour later than in previous years. As a member of the class of 2026, I’ve experienced Fall Ball from its birth; I can see how, while the dance may provide us some memories on the dance floor, Fall Ball still falls short of its promises of community.

Perhaps its label as semi-formal signifies to people that the dance is, literally, somewhat formal, in both attire and attitude expressed towards it. Fall Ball has proven to be more of a figurehead or landmark in the evening, lacking an overarching sense of school spirit and, therefore, the desire to stay together as a community. Without a sports game or pep rally tied to Fall Ball’s existence, like a traditional high school homecoming, we lose that essence of school pride preceding the dance, leaving none to carry over to the dance itself.

Further, Agnes Irwin naturally allows students to invite a guest from any other outside school, resulting in a dance of roughly half Agnes Irwin students and half students from other schools. This low concentration of Agnes Irwin students thus makes Fall Ball less saturated with a shared sense of school community. The dance is promoted as an expression of community value, yet Fall Ball, itself, is arguably only half-connected to the school. 

That’s of course not to say that Agnes Irwin’s desire to celebrate as a community is lost. Just look at AIS/EA Days of years past, for example, and our eagerness to bond and support each other on the athletic fields. We certainly are not lacking the value of school spirit; the problem is that Fall Ball simply isn’t a breeding ground for it. In short: Fall Ball could be so much more.

There are two solutions to this problem: either to embrace Fall Ball’s mediocrity or to revitalize it by tying it to a sense of purpose. In other words, what if Fall Ball evolved into a true homecoming? If it was held on the weekend of AIS/EA Day, for example, the true meaning of a fall high school dance could be restored, and students wouldn’t be bursting out the Lennox Lobby doors at exactly 8:30. Otherwise, we’ll be lucky if Fall Ball prevails to make a true lasting legacy.