By Mariah Taylor ‘26
Sadie Hawkins wouldn’t be a dance at CV if it wasn’t for WLA. WLA stands for “Women’s Leadership Alliance.” It’s a club where girls and boys from different grades in high school come together to discuss fun events for everyone in the student body. Every other Monday the club meets in the LGI at 7:10 am, holding a 20-25 minute long meeting where they discuss different topics and ways to boost school spirit.
The club splits into groups at the start of the year that are separated between “Sadie Hawkins” and “Advertisement/Movie Nights.” This creates smoother planning when it comes to scheduling events.
WLA is known for their monthly movie nights. For instance, October’s theme is always a Halloween movie, so that it can be a fun event for students to get into the spooky spirit.
Planning skills include advertising, scheduling morning meetings, and participating in community events such as the high school’s bonfire to promote or recruit for the club. To explore how WLA sets up an entire school event, such as Sadie Hawkins, read all about it below!
Sadie Hawkins is a WLA specialty. Sadie’s is a dance where girls ask boys, instead of the other way around, putting a fun little twist on the proposals. Although it’s themed around Valentine’s Day, the dance can be for anyone, even if you don’t have a date.
Sadie’s is more laid back and maybe not as chaotic as Homecoming or Prom because it is a smaller event. Sadie’s isn’t that well known because it has only been around for the past 2 years; however, to keep the tradition going at Conestoga Valley, WLA needs as many people as possible to order their tickets and bring their friends!
WLA is a crucial part of this event because they do the decorating, planning, ticket ideas, sales, and so much more. They start planning the event in early November, even though it takes place in late December or February. WLA utilizes leadership and management skills to help prepare for this event.
WLA often communicates even outside of meetings. To set up the gyms and hallways for the dance, it takes nearly 2 days to make all of the decorations flow a certain way and to make sure everything is the way everyone wants it to be. Since WLA works hard to prepare for this event, they want to have a good turn out for this dance. As a way to show your support towards WLA, buy a ticket for Sadie’s, meet up with friends, show up in style, and have fun!
Fun Facts About the Sadie Hawkins Tradition
In the article, Why is it Called a Sadie Hawkins Dance, the author wrote: “The term ‘Sadie Hawkins Dance’ originates from the American comic strip Li’l Abner, created by cartoonist Al Capp in 1934. In the storyline, which first introduced the concept in 1937, there was a character named Sadie Hawkins, described as ‘the homeliest gal in the hills.’ Her father, desperate to find her a husband, declared a special day—’Sadie Hawkins Day’—on which all the unmarried women of Dogpatch, the fictional setting of the strip, would chase the town’s bachelors.”
The Sadie Hawkins dance is supposed to give women the opportunity to ask a man to a dance herself, instead of waiting for a man’s initiation on what he would want to do. In the article, “How A 1930’s Cartoon Inspired The Sadie Hawkin’s Dance” written by Lesley Kennedy, Kennedy said that after the comic was released, “The Sadie Hawkins storyline was a huge hit with readers…These were days long before women’s liberation, when custom largely dictated that a woman should passively wait for a man to express interest in her; the idea of turning the tables on the men was enormously appealing.”
Kennedy went on to explain, “Today, some calendars recognize November 13 as national Sadie Hawkins Day. While the idea of a girl asking a boy to a dance is no longer a novelty—or the only option—many schools still hold the events, although they’re now sometimes referred to as a more gender-neutral “ask anyone dance,” “turnabout dance” or “MORP” (prom spelled backward).”
Although CV may not have the dance on the actual date, the official Sadie Hawkins date is November 13th. The official dance started in the year 1937, so the dance has become a popular event that high schools do for over the past 50 years. In the article written by Bill Petro, History of Sadie Hawkins Day, he says, “I discovered that only ‘people of a certain age’ were familiar with it. That’s because the last time it was in print was 1977, but it began in 1937.”
In the article When & What Is Sadie Hawkins Day?, the author wrote that “the concept of Sadie Hawkins Day quickly gained popularity and became a cultural phenomenon. It was seen as a way to empower women and challenge traditional gender roles. In November 1938, the first ‘girls-ask-boys’ Sadie Hawkins Day dance happened and became popular. In 1939, Life magazine reported that more than 200 colleges had held Sadie Hawkins Day events. The holiday was embraced by many communities, and schools and colleges started organizing Sadie Hawkins dances and events.”
Sadie Hawkins can be a time for young girls to gain self confidence early. Not every school does a Sadie’s dance, so it is important to get involved with this kind of student activity. It is also a different way to bring the school community together and show support for WLA. WLA would like to have a great turn out this year, so that way we can do more events like Sadie’s in the future to bring the school together, and to have school spirit. You also don’t even need a date to go, you can experience it yourself or with a group of friends, and create fun memories throughout the night!