School holds block party for students

Corpus Christi’s high schools are practically living time capsules, each holding decades-old traditions that embed themselves into generation after generation of students. And then there’s the School of Science and Technology, or SST. Being 14 years old, the school has plenty of tradition to catch up to, and this year marks another milestone for the fledgling school.

To celebrate their homecoming volleyball game on Oct. 27, the school held a block party before the game. The Student Council, which includes senior Fabian Martinez, was responsible for organizing and setting up the party.

“It was a fun experience,” Martinez said. “You know, it’s hard work but it’s fun.”

Despite working, he enjoyed being outside of the classroom.

“You’re not doing school,” Martinez said. “You’re outside, setting up, talking to your friends. And we did get stuff done, so it was fun.”

Other students, such as junior Alex Montalvo, also shared positive sentiment.

“It’s alright,” Montalvo said. “It’s nice, it’s a lot of diversity in stuff.”

Diversity is a key word, as many club-sponsored booths were abound. Some provided services to the customers.

“For robotics … we’ve been doing face painting and hair dyeing with spray,” Martinez said.

Some booths, such as one run by teacher Gerardo Guzman, provided games to play.

“It’s your basic putt-putt golf,” Guzman said. “You make a hole-in-one, we’re giving away a free soda.”

Guzman pulled from personal experience when creating his booth.

“I used to be a golf coach,” Guzman said. “We would have these little practice maps that we would use for putt-putt golf.”

Other booths, such as one provided by teacher Bianca Palomin, served as a photo booth.

“I do both yearbook and photography,” Palomin said. “Our aim was to do something that incorporates photographs.”

Palomin used quick thinking when creating her booth.

“I had to work with what I got,” Palomin said. “The whole thing was to use palettes, pumpkins, hay and some milk cartons.”

Several dozen people attended the party, which surprised some students.

“For us being a tiny school, there’s quite a few people,” Montalvo said.

Palomin echoed this sentiment.

“I am amazed we have a lot of participation,” Palomin said. “We have a lot of students that have come around, and it’s nice to see families come around to spend time with their little ones.”

Included in this crowd were some former students who took some time to catch up with their former teachers.

“It feels nice to see my ex-students,” Palomin said. “It brings me joy to know that they’re doing well.”

Students looked forward to similar functions in the future.

“If you’re in a school, you want to have some cool things here and there,” Montalvo said. “If you don’t, school tends to get bland.”

Teachers also left the event in high spirits, hoping to participate again at another time.

“Our students knowing that us teachers, that we care, it helps motivate them to want to participate,” Palomin said.