Celebrating Community, SAS Style
The Shanghai American School community is truly one of a kind. Throughout the year, families, students, and staff come together for many events that showcase our school spirit and the warmth that makes SAS feel like everyone's second home. These gatherings are a reminder that at SAS, community is at the heart of everything we do. We started the school year off with two such events, Friday Night Lights in Pudong and Community Day in Puxi, both were perfect examples that no one throws a community get together quite like SAS.
In Pudong, Friday Night Lights is a tradition that’s been around since the early 2000s. It is our twist on a US school tradition of a high school football game. Picture an evening with athletes, student performances, music, food, the PTSA, and families all blending together into one big campus block party. This night is an opportunity for students to showcase their talents to the rest of the community. As Activities Director Scott Hossack explained, “Friday Night Lights is magical. The way our community comes together to celebrate SAS creates such a positive energy on campus. It’s one tradition that I will always strive to keep going.”
In Puxi this year, Community Day made its debut. Co-hosted by the PTSA and staff, Community Day filled the campus with food trucks, games, gym activities, obstacle courses, and more. Ivy Zhu, Grade 12 parent and High School Co-Head Representative, shared that, “Community Day is a new tradition that welcomes new families to experience life at SAS, alongside the entire SAS community. Everyone gets to meet, eat, play and take part in fun activities. It’s all about bringing our entire community together.” Of course, she also admitted her personal highlight of the day was treating herself to an ice cream!
While these events are just a sample of the many that happen throughout the year, they remind everyone that SAS is a place where traditions grow, memories are made, and sometimes the sweetest moments are the simplest ones.
