On August 27, 2010 The Jamaican Jam returned to Thomas Jefferson High School, where students played in a volleyball tournament, mingled with old and new friends, and boogied on the dance floor.
Photo by Ed Gloor
All week, the students at Thomas Jefferson High School were anticipating the upcoming dance on Friday night. The Jamaican Jam was brought back this year, which was exciting to many who were disappointed with its disappearance last year. It would be an understatement to say the hallways were buzzing with talk of the event. “When the freshmen figured out details and learned what the Jamaican Jam was, they got really excited for it,” said one of the school administrators, JoAnne Moreno.
Jamaican Jam finally arrived on August 27, 2010, and was held in the school’s gym. All the students arrived at 6:00 p.m. and they stayed until the sun went down and the school closed the doors at 9:00p.m. Walking in, students had to present a ticket, receiving a Hawaiian lei in exchange. This year’s theme was not only Jamaican but also a luau.
The main events of the night were the volleyball tournament and dancing. TJ’s gym was divided into two sections, one for each event. One half of the gym was designated for the students to dance. However, the majority of the crowd was on the other side watching the intense volleyball games. All the students could participate in this tournament, but a fee of twenty five dollars was required. The winners this year were the Volleyballers, who were the school’s actual varsity team. “People thought it was unfair that we were a team, but there were no rules against it. It was a lot of fun and made me miss volleyball,” commented one of the winners, Becca Randall. The admission money was then given to the Volleyballers as a cash prize.
Not only was this dance a great opportunity for newcomers to mingle with fellow students, but it also allowed the freshmen to get to know some of the seniors. When selling the tickets, there was a discount price for senior-freshman pairs. At the beginning of the year, the senior class got to pick freshmen to “adopt” and take under their wings. Then to strengthen that bond, the pairs went to the event together. “I took Freshman Ben Moore and I felt like we really got closer; he got a new experience. Now he understands the high school life better,” said Senior Nick Becker.
When 9:00 a.m. rolled around, the students poured out of the front doors with smiles from ear to ear. The administration feels that the turn out of students this year was pretty good. “We sold out all our tickets; we had 250 sold to be exact. People in the Student Council were really happy because it was planned over the summer and it was well organized. Last year it wasn’t organized so that’s why it didn’t happen, so I’m glad that it was brought back,” said Moreno. However, this year’s Jamaican Jam was a great success and the staff and students welcomed the old tradition with open arms.
