While the first Friday of every month was celebrated during the 2022-2023 school year, Student Council will celebrate the last Friday of every month during the 2023-2024 school year. The first Final Friday took place Friday, Sept. 29, and featured friendship-bracelet-making, candy and music playing over speakers from artists like Taylor Swift and Katy Perry.
On Final Fridays, middle and upper school students are invited to wear free dress, with the exception of Final Friday before Spirit Week, which is when students will be invited to wear free dress according to themes assigned to each school day of the week.
Friday events have alternated between occurring on the first or last Friday of every month in past years. Senior Amelia Hines is a member of the Student Council Executive Board and said this school year’s Student Council made the decision to host Final Fridays instead of First Fridays.
“We made a slight shift away from First Friday into Final Friday. We were hoping it aligns better with free dress so the vibes are even better, everyone’s happier, and it’s the end of something and a celebration,” Hines said. “But, what we love about [Student Council] is that we can take the traditions that have always been interwoven into Archer’s fabric and make it our own.”
First and Final Fridays have always been a Student Council tradition, according to senior Tess Hubbard, who is on the Student Council Executive Board alongside Hines. Final Fridays did not take place during COVID-19 but were brought back under the leadership of 2021-2022 Student Council Body President Langdon Janos (’22).
Hubbard said the purpose of Final Fridays is to engage students in celebration. The Student Council Executive Board planned the events for Final Friday, such as preparing beads and string for friendship-bracelet-making.
“A lot of spirit events circle around spirit points, so it’s nice to have an event that’s about celebration,” said Hubbard. “There’s no competition. It’s just, ‘Hey, look, you’ve made it through the month.’”
Seventh grader Samaira Modgil said she enjoys the free dress aspect of Final Fridays the most.
“I wait for the end of the month, then I can finally wear whatever I want,” Modgil said.
According to Hines, the friendship-bracelet-making activity was inspired by bracelets attendees of the Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour made. For future Final Fridays, Hubbard said she hopes class representatives from each grade will be involved with planning the activities.
“We’re hoping this will be something to get off of our plate so it’s more spread out, and people can actually put a ton of time into it. We’re aware of the fact that juniors and sophomores, when they get to be seniors, have to plan these massive events and won’t have much experience planning events before that,” Hubbard said. “We’re hoping this can be an opportunity for them to both take on more responsibility as a student leader and also prepare themselves for when they might have even more responsibility.”
Hines said she often eats lunch in the courtyard, so her favorite part about Final Fridays is spending time in the courtyard after it has been transformed.
“We spend so much time here taking naps and studying and eating, so [I appreciate] having it be transformed into an even more fun place and a hub for gathering,” Hines said. “Archer does a great job at finding pockets of joy within the week, within the month, within the school year. It gives you something to look forward to and something to celebrate.”
