It happens at most school dances, mixers and raves. And it was no different at all the recent “Welcome Back” dances that Monta Vista High School has hosted: The lights dim, the music turns up and students form a tight, crowded circle, grinding with whomever they please.
At Monta Vista’s most recent “Welcome Back” dance on Aug. 22, however, something was different.
Vigilant faculty members roamed the rally court, an outdoor quad, watching for slipping hands and students bending over, ready to cut the wristbands of unsuspecting violators, signifying a first offense.
A few days prior to the dance, assistant principal Mike White sent out an email to all Monta Vista students outlining the new rules of the stricter dance policy. The email said side-to-side swaying, hands on waist and dancing upright is permitted. Anything more than that would result in verbal warnings, removal of a wristband and eventually expulsion from the dance. (The Monta Vista administration did not return emails seeking comment on the changes.)
“Previous years’ dances weren't as appropriate and people didn't know where to limit themselves in terms of dancing,” Monta Vista senior class officer Nish Ullagaddi said.
Saratoga High instituted a similar face-to-face dance policy at the beginning of the 2013-2014 school year. This policy enraged many students and resulted in a decline in attendance at nearly every dance except junior and senior prom.
At Monta Vista, however, dance attendance barely changed.
“There has not been a noticeable difference in the attendance, maybe because there is still freaking allowed,” Monta Vista junior Jason Loo said. “If we had no freaking, we would be having less participation in school dances."
Many Monta Vista students who attended the “Welcome Back” dance agreed that the newly implemented policy at their school was not very effective.
At the dance, many students still grinded with each other. When a faculty member walked by, friends would warn each other and momentarily alter their dance style to avoid being caught.
The ratio of chaperones to students at dances also made it more difficult for the administration to keep a constant watchful eye.
“There are more students than admins so I actually saw a couple watch for admins and dance really inappropriately and then stop when the admins came by,” junior Nanette Wu said.
Even those who organized the dance were caught by administrators, harming their grade in their Leadership class.
Saratoga senior Jackie An, who attended Monta Vista’s 2013 Winter Ball, presumes that the Monta Vista administration made an effort to limit the sexual dancing, but the students won’t censor their dancing to fit the policy.
“The dance culture at MV is way crazier than ours, and everyone grinds,” An said
On the other hand, Saratoga senior Patrick Huynh said that the Monta Vista administration successfully limited the ways students can dance by cutting wristbands at the 2013 Homecoming Dance.
“There were admins walking around the entire time, checking for people doing ‘illicit’ activities, and I personally thought that was pretty effective,” Huynh said. “They didn't need to implement a no grinding rule.”
In order to enforce Saratoga’s dance policy without seriously losing participants, Huynh believes that the administration should try utilizing Monta Vista’s system.
“The no-grinding policy shouldn't be as strict as it is,” Huynh said. “[Saratoga] should integrate the use of wristbands into the dances to make them more enjoyable for students [while] controlling them.”
Other Saratoga students, like An, say the face-to-face policy has greatly improving the quality and fun at dances.
“The administration already changed [the policy], and it's officially been a year since the change,” An said. “I think people need to get over it and stop complaining.”