“BIG CITY, BRIGHT LIGHTS”
“Shine Bright like a Diamond” and get ready to be “Hot in the City!” It’s time for the 70th Annual Homecoming at Central celebration at Rocket Hill. It’s a district tradition that first put its mark on the Central community during Halloween Week in 1953.
In 2023, we’ll celebrate the “Big City, Bright Lights.” We’re excited to share the schedule of events for this year’s festivities and all of the fun activities happening around the district, not just at Rocket Hill.
Spirit Week Schedules
- Central High School
- Central Middle School
- Country Trails Elementary School
- Howard B. Thomas Grade School
- Lily Lake Grade School
- Prairie Knolls Middle School
- Prairie View Grade School
| MONDAY 9/18 |
| CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL The dress up theme is PJ Day. Which allows us to joke that the student body will look…pretty much the same as they do every day. 🙂 Meanwhile, the Girls Golf team will take on Huntley at Whisper Creek Golf Course and you can watch football inside the stadium with the JV and F/S B teams battling Crystal Lake Central. MIDDLE SCHOOLS At Central Middle School (CMS), comfort doesn’t always equal fashion. That’s always been the case with an iconic actor and producer. Some would call Adam Sandler Day a preview of what life on campus will look like for some of your students! Others would say this is a golden opportunity to pay homage to the Billy Madison and Happy Gilmore star. We’re hoping to get enough looks at CMS where our photos could make this theme go viral. Now that would be trendsetting! Prairie Knolls Middle School (PK) students will get to roll out of bed comfortable and head straight to school for PJ Day as well. (Kind of the same thing, right?) GRADE SCHOOLS The students at Country Trails Elementary School (CT) get to wake up and go for their Pajama Day. Howard B. Thomas Grade School (HBT) and Lily Lake Grade School (LL) students are being asked to wear something that represents the country or city they are from (a flag emblem, traditional clothing, etc.) At Prairie View Grade School (PV), it’s a giant birthday celebration, so make sure you wear your party hats! |
| TUESDAY 9/19 |
| CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL It’s Super Tuesday on Rocket Hill with a ton of sports, and it’s a Rhyme Without Reason Day at Central High School. Rhyme without Reason is when two students pair up and represent two rhyming words that do not have anything else to do with each other. The Boys and Girls Cross Country teams host their first meet of the season over at Plato Township Park. It’s a triangular battle against Crystal Lake South and Dundee-Crown. The Boys Golf team tees it up against rival Hampshire at Whisper Creek Golf Course. On the CHS Soccer Fields behind Howard B. Thomas Grade School, the boys will face Crystal Lake South. Finally, the volleyball team will play host to Huntley. It’s a busy one, so make sure you have your GoFan app on the phone and purchase tickets beforehand. MIDDLE SCHOOLS Get out your aloha shirts for this one as PK students celebrate Tropical Day. CMS kids will take the tropics into a battle against old man winter for a day shaped up to be quite the matchup: Tropical Day vs. Winter Wonderland. GRADE SCHOOLS CT kids will get to wear their favorite team jersey or shirt to school. HBT students will wear their grade level colors while Lily Lake students will show their Lion Pride! Speaking of color, it might be a bit bright in the halls at PV with students participating in Neon Day. |
| WEDNESDAY 9/20 |
| CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL Students might be up extra early to get their pink on. It will be fashion and bright colors and some “beachin'” as we celebrate the #1 movie of 2023. It’s Barbie vs. Ken day. Sunglasses and style are required! Wednesday is when the busy week really kicks into gear on Rocket Hill. First up is the annual Central 301 Powder Puff event. The gates open at the stadium at 4:30 PM with the freshmen and sophomores doing battle at 5:00 PM. Then the juniors will face the seniors at 6:00 PM. Concessions will be made available starting at 4:30 PM with pizza, pop, water and candy all for sale to benefit the senior and freshman class as part of Powder Puff Pizza Palooza 2023. (Say that 3x out loud real fast!) If you’re curious, here are the rules. Flag football, no tackling. Finally, our Community Pep Rally gets rolling around 7:00 PM with performances from our Cheer Team, Dance Team, the Big Blue Band of Pride, and we’ll announce the fall teams, and the highly anticipated Homecoming Court for 2023. We will end the evening with a spectacular Central 301 Fireworks Display at 8:45 PM. MIDDLE SCHOOLS PK and CMS students will both jump into the Barbie vs. Ken battle on Wednesday as well! GRADE SCHOOLS HBT students will “dress to impress” as they are being asked to wear fancy clothes. Lily Lake students will show their fandom with their favorite jersey or sports outfit. At CT, students get to wear their House Color. Teachers might see a block of yellow, blue, purple, green or red in the halls throughout the day. At PV, the students will have a little fun with the staff. They’ll dress up as a teacher or staff member in a game of “Which Teacher Am I?” Remember, imitation is the highest form of flattery! |
| THURSDAY 9/21 |
| CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL The celebration of some of the greatest cities across America and around the world takes center stage with Dress as Your Class City Day. Seniors will bring the Grand Ol’ Opry to Rocket Hill, celebrating Nashville. Juniors will have stars in their eyes while paying homage to Hollywood. Sophomores will wish they had their toes in the sand and the water at their feet in Nassau. Freshmen will jazz it up and dream of gumbo for lunch in honor of New Orleans. The Boy’s Soccer team will play host to Crystal Lake Central under the lights at the CHS Soccer Fields with the varsity kickoff set for 6:00 PM behind Howard B. Thomas Grade School. MIDDLE SCHOOLS Root for the home team at both CMS and PK with the hallways filled with students supporting their favorite sports team or wearing their favorite jersey. GRADE SCHOOLS It’s Tacky Tourist Day at HBT and Lily Lake with students traveling their buildings with their class to view the door decorations! From tacky to wacky, CT students will get crazy with their outfits for Wacky Day. The colors will be shining with pride as students at PV will wear their favorite color. |
| FRIDAY 9/22 |
| CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL Time to honor the blue and white as your Central Rockets get ready for a big matchup on Rocket Hill. We start Central Pride Day with the drumline entrance at 7:45 AM in the cafeteria. Then it’s a day long build up to our homecoming football game with McHenry. The Warriors come to Rocket Hill one year after dashing the Rockets’ playoff hopes. The JV game starts at 4:45 PM and the Varsity is set to kickoff around 7:00 PM. This will be the first homecoming visit to Rocket Hill for McHenry and just the 4th meeting of all time between the schools. (McHenry leads 2-1) The Rockets are eyeing their first homecoming victory since 2019. We want the Warriors to face a wild and raucous crowd with an energized student section. Please remember our spectator guidelines in place for events throughout the week. Click the link below to learn more on our Rocket Hill events policy. Central Rockets – 2023-2024 Spectator Guidelines Also, there’s a brand new ticket policy at Central High School this year. All tickets need to be purchased by using the GoFan app. Make sure you download it before you come to Rocket Hill. Central Rockets – Event Tickets Lookin’ forward to seeing everyone Friday night!! Don’t forget to wear your blue and white!! MIDDLE SCHOOLS CMS students cheer for the Comets and get to showcase that Comet Pride with blue and white. PK students will show their support by wearing their Falcon Gear or Rockets apparel. GRADE SCHOOLS The blue and white spirit spreads to HBT as students are being asked to wear their Twister Blue! Lily Lake students will show their school spirit with their Lion Gear or Rockets gear. At CT, students are asked to show their Cougar Pride by showing school spirit with their Cougar gear. PV students will be in Spirit Wear as they showcase their favorite Coyote or Rockets gear! |
| SATURDAY 9/23 |
| CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL The Homecoming Dance celebration happens on Rocket Hill at 7:00 PM through 10:00 PM. A DJ will provide music for dancing. Food trucks will be on site for food purchase. Proceeds from bottled water being sold will benefit Prom 2024. Tickets – $25.00 (2 max) – Buy Tickets Here Doors open at 6:45 PM. Tickets are NOT sold at the door. NO CASH. Attire is semi-formal. Student drop off will be in the front staff parking lot, and students will check in at the table on the sidewalk. Students who are driving to the event are asked to park in lots by the baseball field and the HBT lot. Please arrive early in case we have a line of people to get in. If a student wishes to bring a guest from outside of Central High School, they will be REQUIRED to have this form filled out and returned NO LATER than Monday, September 18 Dance Form For Guests |
That’s the entire list of events going on at Central 301 this week. Special thank you to all the schools that are putting on a good show this week and the Central High School Student Council. Should you have any questions, please make sure you follow us on social media for the latest daily and hourly updates.
| Central 301 | Social Media Handles |
|---|---|
| @CentralSchoolDistrict301 | |
| Twitter / X | @Central301; @301_chs; @athletics_rocket |
| @central_cusd301 | |
| YouTube | @Central 301 |
| Threads (NEW) | @central_cusd301 |
Have a great Homecoming Week!
#WeAreCentral