During the week of September 19-23, Carolina Forest High School will celebrate our homecoming, concluding with a home game against a local rival, North Myrtle Beach.

Carolina Forest High School opened in 1997 and has Homecoming traditions that are different from most. The school prides itself on the parade which features class-decorated golf carts, school programs like the marching band, JROTC, as well as the Homecoming court. People  within the Carolina Forest community line the streets supporting their Panthers and awaiting the candy that is often thrown to spectators. Another tradition that follows the legacy of the school is the hall decorating contest where students spend countless hours embellishing the front of an assigned house. The decorations are based on the theme chosen each year.

For the 2022 Homecoming, the theme is Superheroes:  Freshmen-Batman, Sophomores-Superman, Juniors- Hulk and Seniors-Spiderman.

Senior Maya Elbadawy shares, “I am most excited for the Homecoming pep-rally because there are so many fun activities planned for everyone. I am also anxious to find out who the prince and the princess are, which will be announced at the pep-rally.”

Many people don’t realize how far back the tradition of Homecoming goes. Homecoming started off as a tradition that occurred only at colleges and universities across the United States but quickly spread to the high school level often accompanied by a dance. As early as the 1900s, colleges hosted a football game that brought alumni back together and boosted school spirit. After the game, a dance would be hosted to celebrate the game results and bring the team and the community together as one. Throughout the week, festivities like parades, spirit days, and Homecoming court are a few ways the community gets together to celebrate and support the team.

Throughout the country many universities tried to claim that they were the first to hold a Homecoming, but there is little evidence to support these claims. The list of universities include Baylor 1909, Southwestern 1909, and the University of Illinois in 1910.

The Homecoming court came later starting in the early 1930s and was primarily based on looks and popularity while today’s court is based on teacher and student nominations. The honor of being chosen as the Homecoming queen and king is reserved for the senior class.

Everyone is looking forward to a week of fun-filled activities in the Forest, especially on Friday with a morning pep-rally, an afternoon parade, the crowning, and the football game which will begin at 7:30 p.m.