It’s that time of year in East Texas again. The time high school football players and debutants eagerly await, and once it’s over they remember it for the rest of their lives. Of course I’m referring to Homecoming! As someone who attended a small private school neither homecoming, nor prom were major parts of my high school experience. Consequently, as a Jr. High and High School teacher, I’ve been educated by my students as they go through the process of preparation.

Historically these traditions have not been a major part of private, religious education, but in recent years, private school parents and students have expressed the desire for a more traditional high school experience in the most positive sense. To meet this demand even smaller institutions have started making them a part of their fall calendars. Case in point, King’s Academy held its Homecoming football game and dance this weekend. While the school is on the small side, the student body forges ahead, determined to uphold the time honored rituals of college- prep schools. One interesting aspect of holding these events in a smaller school is that everyone participates. Attendance is always good thanks to a rather positive function of peer pressure. The football team makes up around half the male population of King’s, which says a lot for the student’s school spirit in my opinion.

After a tough loss at last year’s homecoming game, (which is actually played at Grace Community’s field), The King’s Academy Royal Knights bounced back in a big way this year. They defeated the Bloomburg Wildcats fifty seven to thirty. It’s good to see the opportunities growing for private school students. With more challenging academics than most public institutions, and an expanding field of extra- curriculars, private and religious schools are more and more looking like the best of both worlds.

For more information on six- man football look for my previous articles entitled Six- Man Pre- Season Football Begins in Tyler TX, and Six- Man Football Returns to Tyler by simply clicking on the following links: http://www.tylertxdirectory.com/3384/six-man-preason-football-begins-in-tyler-texas/, http://www.tylertxdirectory.com/223/six-man-football-returns-to-tyler/.