By Shannon Fan ’20 News Reporter
From the original tradition of Paint the Numbers, with designs painted on Main Street and Seniors breaking into the student center after hours, to the now school-sponsored event, the Class of 2020 has witnessed an entire transformation of the Paint the Numbers tradition.
A monumental change this year is the decision to include all seniors as opposed to restricting participation to the four year seniors only. Though change is always hard, this is a step in the right direction. In previous years, I would see friends who have attended Mercersburg for one, two, or three years excluded from making their mark on their class numbers, a number that the entire senior class shares. Regardless of the duration of our stay, all seniors help shape the school dynamic and our collective experience. This should be reflected in blue and white on the driveway. This being said, the four-year senior pizza party does create a valuable and necessary opportunity enabling four-year seniors to celebrate their bond. We can be proud and inclusive at the same time.
At its core, Paint the Numbers is a way for seniors to express their sense of connection with the school. The inclusion of all seniors is conducive to this mission, but using the same design as the previous class is most definitely not. I wish the numerous talented artists in our class could have unleashed their creativity in a design unique to the Class of 2020. So much hype surrounds Paint the Numbers, so the class council should not have chosen to repaint the same design simply because it was easier.
The scheduling and organization could also improve. Details like ordering enough paint and scheduling the event on a Saturday night could have ensured that we had a better experience.
In the midst of all of the change to this important tradition, I do, however, appreciate the school’s and the class council’s genuine effort to make the night fun and memorable. Though seniors can no longer hang out in the student center after the event, a bonfire and pizza seem like more than adequate substitutes. Either way, this is the one and only time that the Class of 2020 will paint the numbers. Judging from the Instagram photographs and the stubborn paint in everyone’s hair, I think everyone ha