Students and faculty meander through TJ’s halls in the annual carnival featuring different student run activities and booths.
Photo by Mia Nogueira
TJ’s annual Renaissance Carnival went off without a hitch featuring a dodge ball tournament, 28 different booths, as well as a period out of class for students and faculty to celebrate a job well done and the completion of this years CSAP testing.
The Renaissance Carnival is usually held in the fall semester close to the beginning of each new school year. However, this year planning conflicts prevented the carnival from happening last semester. Due to extensive planning and work on JoAnne Moreno’s part, TJ was able to hold it this semester following the concluding of CSAP testing. “The whole carnival was organized for the freshmen and sophomores as a reward for trying hard and doing they’re best on CSAP. I was happy to hear several times that it was the best carnival we’ve had. We’re thinking about keeping SpringFest as a reward for the effort put forth on CSAP,” said Moreno.
Freshmen and Sophomores had free admission into the carnival as a reward for their hard work on CSAP. However, the whole school was invited to participate, with admission being one dollar per ticket for Juniors and Seniors. Pepsi also provided a free soda for all who attended. “It was nice to have free admission especially after a week of testing that the upperclassmen got off. It was a nice, fun incentive from the school for working hard on our tests,” said Sophomore Ty Roder.
A popular attraction at the carnival, the dodge ball tournament, included over 15 teams competing for a 100 dollar cash prize. Each team paid 25 dollars to participate and had six to ten players each competing. This year the top team, the Ghetto Souljas, won the 100 dollar cash prize. Even though they didn’t get a prize, the opposing players say they enjoyed competing in the tournament. “I had a really fun time forming a team with my friends and creating a strategy for the tournament with them. It was a fun competition regardless of who won or lost; it was just nice to get out of class for a fun event,” said Roder.
This year’s carnival featured 28 booths sponsored by TJ’s clubs and sports, including everything from a pie eating contest held by JROTC to a putt-putt booth held by TJ’s golf team. The booths were, for the most part, student run. Students say they enjoyed both working in the booths in addition to walking around the carnival with friends. “This was my first year working in a booth. I worked at the National Honors Society booth popping and selling popcorn. The new experience was fun and I enjoyed participating in the carnival because usually I participate in dodge ball or just walk around with friends,” said Junior Daniel Wakefield.
