The 2023-2024 Homecoming Parade will be taking place on a different route. Previously, it ended downtown at Memorial Field with a Pep Rally, but now the route will be rounding back to the high school and finishing there.

From clubs and teams competing for the best floats to candy throwing and families coming to watch the spectacle, the State High Homecoming Parade is a tradition that State College looks forward to. It’s a way to celebrate the new school year with everybody, including the students and faculty.

“Talking to older people in the community that have grown up here, it’s one of their favorite parades. I don’t have to give numerous praises, but there’s the Fourth of July, First Night, and the Homecoming Parade,” Vice Principal and parade organizer Ryan Walsh said.

But the planning of the festivity came with a difficult challenge this year.

“Each year, we meet with the local police department because they’re in charge of closing down the roads,” Walsh explained.

One of the main concerns of the police was the ability to close down Atherton Street and with the road being a major road that leads to difficulties and traffic.

“[Atherton Street] is a state road, which is different from local roads,” Walsh stated. Along with the reconstruction of Atherton and many other factors, it was suggested by the police department that closing down the street would not be feasible this year causing the search for an alternative route.

The main concern for Walsh was to “make sure that the tradition of the parade was upheld” and that “[for] our students, especially our seniors, [the parade] was as similar to ones in the past.” The process of the Homecoming parade is still relatively the same — with building floats and spending time with teams, having the parade, and ending with a Pep Rally.

“Even though it’s not [at] Memorial, it’s as close as that previous experience could be, at the same time, living up to and abiding by some of the rules and regulations of our local police department,” Walsh commented.

The reaction of the students to the HOCO Parade route change was mainly open-minded. The LGBTQIAP+ Alliance Club, who are participating in the parade approached the change in a neutral light. There might be a slight issue with the amount of candy and items being thrown out not being enough but President Alex Calcagni voiced, “I can see both the positives and negatives because of the tradition but also the longer route means getting more people involved.”

Homecoming has always been a time of celebration for the State High community with the parade being one main event of many. The parade is a part of the culture of the long standing high school, “It’s about bringing people together and getting more involved with the community,” Calcagni expressed.

Along the same lines, Walsh agreed, “Part of our culture and community of State High is the Homecoming Parade. So keeping that tradition going, even though it’s a little different than maybe in the past — I think the spirit of the tradition is still there.”