The idea of the costume contest was created so staff and students had an opportunity to dress up and enjoy Halloween. MSD’s administrators and Principal Michelle Kefford even surprised classrooms filled with students across the school with candy during their second period.

“I thought today’s Halloween costume day was an amazing way for students and teachers to incorporate the festive holiday during school,” freshman Juliana Delgado said. “When the administrators came into my class, I saw their costumes, and I loved them. Not only were they creative, but it was well executed. They also passed out some candy for my class, which made my classmates and I very happy.”

Administrators greeted students in the morning and interacted with them all throughout the day. Many of them held cardboard cutouts of iconic figures such as Bob Ross and Mona Lisa, where the administrator’s faces replaced the hole in which the original person’s face was supposed to be. Teachers went all out as well with some appearing as Disney characters like Gru and Minnie Mouse.

The Admin team is painting a new canvas this year at Stoneman Douglas – so why not keep the theme going with a bit of art history for All Hallows Eve! 🤣 🎨 🎃 pic.twitter.com/7vsaXJbUB8

— MSDHighSchool (@MSDHighSchool) October 31, 2019

The winner of A lunch was ESE teacher Joanne Wallace, who came fully decked out as a crazy cat lady. Her accessories included cats strung throughout her hair and a balloon clipped to the back of her bicycle, which she proudly displayed during lunch with her rides around the school’s courtyard.

The winner of B lunch was the Social Studies Department, which consisted of 12 crayons in various colors. The teachers incorporated their chosen color in cone-shaped party hats and “Crayon” t-shirts. The crayons matched perfectly with MSD’s Teacher of the Month paintbrush award and the theme this year: painting a new canvas.

“Ms. Reoven came up with the idea that we should be crayons. Mrs. Kefford is full of spirit and she thought that it would be nice that everybody be involved. She’s about school spirit and people participating,” AP Human Geography teacher Carla Verba said. “So everybody picked a color that they wanted to be and we went down [to lunch] as a department. I would say, probably social studies had, if not 100% participation, we had 98.9% participation.”

In addition to the teacher Halloween costume contest, there was another held for students at the same time. Numerous students dressed to impress, from Winnie the Pooh to a banana. One winner was senior Jameson Cohen, who appeared as Steve from “Blue’s Clues.” He mimicked Steve with a replica of the light and dark green sweater the TV character wore and khaki pants. He sealed the deal by bringing along a stuffed animal of the puppy, Blue.

“My inspiration for the costume was me wanting to be someone a lot of people would recognize. Since Blue’s Clues had an impact on my two older siblings, my one younger sibling, and my parents, I knew it would be the right costume. It was also an added bonus that I look like Steve from Blue’s Clues,” senior Jameson Cohen said. “Winning felt pretty good, but I like the fact that I got to wear something that made people happy.”

Overall, MSD’s Halloween was a spooky and sweet success. The day’s celebration came a day after MSD’s third annual “Trunk or Treat” in the senior parking lot.