Glistening lights, sparkling snowflakes, and the occasional Christmas song fill the halls of Bangor Area High School this time of year. The elves behind this holiday magic were members of the Student Government Association (SGA), who stayed after school on Wednesday, December 6, preparing for the annual tree decorating Clash of the Classes event.

Originally, real Christmas trees were used to decorate the halls, but the idea was shut down due to the presence of a fire hazard. Therefore, people donated artificial trees that the students could use instead.

“We were very appreciative for the donations. Eventually, the trees began to wear down, so when I took over SGA five years ago, we worked hard to raise money in order to get new trees, which then started the tradition of Clash of the Classes,” SGA advisor Mrs. Brown said.

The tree decorating contest begins with a theme, whether that be Christmas movies, songs, sayings, or stories. Once the theme is chosen, each class votes on an idea relating to that topic for their tree. This year’s theme is holiday sayings: Merry and Bright, Winter Wonderland, Ho-Ho-Ho, and Fa-la-la.

“I think we worked well with the decorations we had,” senior Alex Schwartz said. “The seniors did a great job with the brightness of the tree by stringing about ten strands of lights on it.”

Once the trees are decorated, they’re judged by appearance, creativity, and how well they resemble their topic. Staff members are given a tree rubric in the mail and are to return them to Mrs. Brown by December 19. The winning tree(s) will be announced on Wednesday, December 21.

“This year, we took a new approach, trying to make the tree very classy and simple. Our class did an excellent job unifying to help put it together,” junior Akash Sareen said. “We have high hopes for the tree and are expecting to see some great results within the competition. It was a great time for the group and we are very satisfied with our ‘wonderful’ tree.”

Like any other Clash of the Classes event, the trees will be scored from a 4-1 scale (4 being first place, 1 being last place).

Overall, the hall and tree decorating is meant to bring joy and holiday spirit to students and teachers.

“I love watching the students faces each year when they walk in to the school and look around at all the Christmas decorations,” Mrs. Brown said.

As students become anxious to find out the Christmas tree results, many are preparing for SGA’s upcoming spirit week. On Wednesday, December 21, the results of the tree decorating will be announced as students are judged by how well they dressed up as their favorite Christmas character – another Clash of the Classes event. Don’t forget…be creative!