Student Council has ambitious plans for the return of Winter Ball after a two year hiatus on December 22 from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. at Mechanics Hall in Worcester.

Long known as a special night for the school to gather together before winter break, Winter Ball is a semi-formal dance for all grades.

“It’s not a date dance, because we don’t want that social pressure of having to find a date, so it’s just a go-with-your-friends type thing,” senior class president Laura Shi said.

Student Council has waited two years for the Winter Ball to pique interest again. They have considered bringing the ball back since 2015, when the last Winter Ball was held.

“[The popularity of the ball just died] in the past, and it’s really a shame, because it was such a great thing that brought the school together,” Student Council president and senior Jessica Yin said.

Mechanics Hall, located in Worcester, is an old style architectural building that has huge arching wall, paintings, and chandeliers. The theme of the ball is white with semi formal attire with no need for tuxes or long dresses.

“[Students should] have a good time, and dance with [their] friends, and it can be a more inclusive event,” Yin said.

“High school only happens once in your life, and these are the memories that you create that years down the line are what you talk about,” principal Dr. Sara Walsh said. “Thinking about the professional community, you attend these events, so why not try it in high school? It gives you a really good real life experience, but on top of that, that’s what high school is about, and you should enjoy high school.”

The goal for this year’s Winter Ball is to revive the tradition that was lost the past few years. According to Shi, the school facilitates dances to boost student morale and bring classmates together, usually to much success.

In the past, school dances, including the Winter Ball used to be extremely popular.

“We sold 950 tickets to the Winter Ball one year,” Student Council adviser and social studies teacher John Barry said.

“[The last Winter Ball] was fun and didn’t feel too controlled, but it wasn’t out-of-hand either. I like to dance, even if it’s just at a school dance. I enjoyed it a lot,” senior Kira Levenson said.

According to Shi, the Winter Ball used to be something that students looked forward to, but students lost interest due to the cultural shift that the school had to adapt to. Shi explained that the presence of phones is what may cause people to prefer to stay home instead of socializing face-to-face.

As The Harbinger reported in 2015, that due to the increased use of technology in teenagers, there has been a lack of interest in school events, particularly in the Winter Ball, which is partly responsible for the cultural shift.

“Certain culturally important dances [had] stayed steady: Homecoming, Winter Ball and of course the Prom; but then there would be [steering committee sponsored] dances that were popular and then you started to see those things fade away,” Barry said in a 2015 The Harbinger article.

However, in the past two years, students, faculty and parents have asked to bring it back, and Student Council took on the challenge.

“Look how well our football games are attended, our soccer games, our field hockey games are so well attended, our dances are really well attended,” Walsh said. “I don’t know any other way, so this would be my Algonquin way, and I can’t foresee it not to be well attended.”