Crowds roaring, students shouting, pom-poms flying in the air after the first touchdown. People cheering in bright and different themes of clothing, hyping up their team, and participating in cheers. What do people think about when they hear “Dungeon”?

Dungeon. The Dungeon is a group of seniors tasked with promoting attendance at and support for sports and performing arts events at Bishop’s. They have numerous goals for the 2021-2022 school year, but the principal goal is bringing back school spirit. How are they enacting those goals so far? 

Since the Bishop’s community has been back on campus, the Dungeon has created a spirited-filled year so far. The Dungeon was intriguing to Seniors Angelina Robles, Calvin Belmonte-Ryu, and Jackie Cosio. COVID-19 forced students to spend all their time on their screens with no opportunities to play sports. “The Dungeon in the last few years [has] not been exciting and there has been close to no school spirit… I remember coming into the school there used to be a lot of school spirit. That is where we want to see the bar,” Calvin explained

The members of the Dungeon have used clothing themes this year to draw a bigger crowd. Leaders of the Dungeon post videos on their Instagram page, @bishopsdungeon, explaining what to wear and how to attend the games. “I like to think of the games [as] parties, so I think of themes that would be good for parties,” said Calvin, Vice President of the Dungeon, but also, in his own words, “Post Game Function Planner and official hype man.” This, in turn, creates a “more vibrant energy at the games that attracts people [to come].. and people tell their friends to come and it spreads from there,” Vice President Jackie explained.

Along with creating fun themes like Western, USA, and Hawaiian, the Dungeon wanted to have inclusivity throughout their group so that they can create more impactful projects. 

Angie is the sports rep for ASBC and she is the president of the Dungeon. She leads the Instagram page, and promotes, goes, and reports the sports games. She said, “Seniors have the privilege of becoming Dungeon.” At the start of the year, she explained, “There was an application process to select Dungeon leaders. We sent out a Google Form to the senior class so that everyone had a fair opportunity to apply and potentially become a Dungeon leader. We then conducted interviews and selected who we believed were the most qualified for the job.” However, the Dungeon’s application and acceptance process, to some outside the Dungeon, did not feel as inclusive as the group portrayed it to be. Ashlyn Hunter (‘22) commented on the Dungeon and the changes in attendance, saying, “All of the Dungeon members are sports players so naturally, they gravitate to sports-related games.”

The Dungeon wants to work on their inclusivity goals by focusing on supporting women athletes. Even so, Angie “wants to make it more than that.” Her plan is to “support women’s sports more.” She explained, “At my basketball games, there is literally nobody there except for the parents.” Angie wants to give “the same if not more support than the guys support teams… The goal is to get the people excited about attending female sports.” By doing so, “I will promote their games on social media, include some…cool videos and perhaps interview the captains…”

Angie also wants to promote other types of student performance. She explained, “I also want to support performing arts…There are a bunch of things going on, like the fall play, the PDG, the art showcase. That’s my plan.”

The Dungeon leaders have tried to put these plans into action by creating a supporting crowd at sports games, women and men. However, a member of Performing Dance Group (PDG), Ashlyn commented, “[Even though] I have never been promised by a Dungeon member, I do not see the same enthusiasm for the arts as I do with sports. Granted, the environment of the audience is very different at a sports game and a performance.”

Even though the Dungeon is always improving its plan for inclusivity, their mission to hype up the Bishop’s community has stayed the same.