The Upper School took steps this winter to use student voice in planning the newest event added to the calendar, which the majority of the student body has coined the “Agendance.” The dance will take place on February 10 and is a product of planning between Agenda Committee members and Lemon Club, which operates as a chapter of Alex’s Lemonade Stand.

The idea for a dance first came about when Upper School Dean of Students, Will Miller, requested that Agenda co-Clerks Haila Desai ’24 and Andrew Mercantini ’23 plan an event in February, as the time between the beginning of January and early March contained a lack of division-wide events.  The amount of student input is unique to this specific event, as the planning of the event was “take[n] to Agenda so that students could give feedback … on what [they] wanted the event to look like,” Miller mentioned.

According to Desai, the co-clerks took the planning to Agenda, where they sent out a Google Form asking for event ideas. After the clerks received many ideas, the options were narrowed down to “two main ideas, a basketball tournament or a dance … and the students picked a dance,” Desai said. Desai added that the amount of student involvement has been “good because more student input means more students will be curious and come to the event.”

Miller agreed with Desai’s sentiments, stating that “students having a voice in the planning is better than having administrators and faculty telling the students ‘okay, here’s what we’re going to do,’ so I think that’s a benefit [of] having student voice involved.” He also commented on the “energy” created by an event planned by the students: “At the end of the day, people chose for a dance-type of event … and they enjoy being able to go out there and just have a good time.”

Around the time of Agenda Committee’s decision to plan a February dance, the Lemon Club officers, Julia Tourtellotte ’23 and Sreehita Hajeebu ’23, had also been planning an Upper School dance to fundraise for their club, but soon realized that having two dances on the calendar could be a bit repetitive. Tourtellotte noted that, when thinking about how to solve the problem, she and Hajeebu thought that “it could be good to combine and plan [a dance] together.”

The funds raised by the dance will go to one specific charity: Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation. Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation is an organization that raises money for pediatric cancer research. Tourtellotte said “the goal of the dance is to not only raise funds but also to raise awareness for this great cause in a fun way.”

Tourtellotte invites anyone who wishes to have a good time with the rest of the Upper School to attend: “Just like any other school dance, it’s a fun social event for our community to bond, plus all the funds are going to an incredible cause. There’s no reason not to come; it’s a fun event in support of making a difference for children in need!”

The “Agendance” will take place on February 10 from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. and is Valentine’s Day-themed. The dress code for the event is “casual attire.”