After a three-year hiatus, Battle of the Classes made an energetic return during the week of Feb. 10. The schoolwide event pitted all four classes against one another in a series of games ranging from relay races to paddling cardboard boats in the pool, culminating in a victory for the juniors.
On the first day, the
upperclassmen faced the underclassmen on the field for a match of Ultimate Frisbee, where each grade level was represented by four students. The upperclassmen had an early triumph with a score of 42-0. On the second day, classes raced against each other in a 4×200-meter relay race, where the juniors secured victory with a time of 1:44.87. The freshmen made a comeb
ack on the third day in Capture the Flag, where they captured five flags, resulting in a tie with the seniors. Nearing the final day of the event, classes constructed cardboard boats to prepare for the concluding game on Friday: boat racing in the pool, where two representatives from each class rowed down their lane. Despite vigorous efforts, only the juniors’ boat made it to the end without sinking. Emerging as the ultimate victor, the Class of 2026 was awarded with donuts.
“Battle of the Classes turned out great and was a fun experience for all the people involved,” junior and participant Maulik Agrawal said.
“I’m happy that our class won, and I wish we did something like this every year.”
In contrast to many other school events, Battle of the Classes — a competition only held once prior in 2020 — aimed to foster interclass unity through friendly competition. This year’s boat race was inspired by Cupertino High School’s Battle of the Classes and was not an event in Lynbrook’s 2020 version. Furthermore, since not many students showed up to the last Battle of the Classes in 2020, this year’s class presidents strongly emphasized class participation through announcements.
“We wanted to start
the second semester with something new, especially since this was highly requested,” sophomore and Class of 2027 president Arnav Kodavati said. “We saw how much fun activities like Homecoming were and wanted to bring out Lynbrook’s competitive spirit.”
Restoring the event proved to be a struggle in previous years, as class officers were simultaneously occupied with planning other events like junior an
d senior prom. However, this year, the officers were determined to carry it out.
“We timed it well by adding this event to the calendar at the beginning of the school year,” senior and Class of 2025 president Dishita Aeron said. “Therefore, we didn’t need to worry about being too busy planning other events.”
In December, the class presidents began brainstorming visions for the event. They decided on physical competitive games, inspired by their initial idea for an Olympics-themed event. While finalizing the games, they communicated with ASB adviser Anna Kirsh and senior and ASB president Calvin Zhou, both of whom provided feedback. To use facilities like the swimming pool and field, they coordinated with Assistant Principal Tara Grande and athletic director Jennifer Griffin.
“Instead of a certain class or commissioners planning, the various class presidents were all working together, which was unique,” Kirsh said. “T
hey’re all good listeners and cooperative, which is one of the reasons the event turned out successfully.”
The chance of rain posed a challenge in the process, as class presidents were only notified two weeks prior. With no knowledge of the rain’s intensity, they prepared alternate indoor activities like four-corners soccer. Despite the light rain on Wednesday, the battle played out smoothly.
“The rain and gloomy weather deterred some people from coming outside to watch the event,” junior and Class of 2026 president Vihaan Patel said. “However, everything went as planned, and with all the energetic cheering, it was exciting.”
Following a successful turnout, the class presidents hope to continue the tradition of Battle of the Classes by making it an annual event, incorporating even more games and participants from each class.
“Battle of the Classes was sup
er fun to watch, and the boat race was very thrilling,” freshman and Class of 2028 president Hannah Zhang said. “In the future, we could add games that aren’t necessarily athletic and advertise the event more.”
