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Sundevil traditions
From jumping in a lake during Back to School camp to making their mark on the Senior Handprint Wall, Sandia Prep students engage in a wide variety of traditions that help connect them to the school’s rich history -- and to each other.
Our traditions range from the academic -- such as the sixth graders’ Africa Day -- to the silly, such as seniors dressed in pink from head to toe tearing through the Field House during Spirit Week. All of these customs and celebrations instill pride in our school and strengthen Sundevils’ bonds and sense of belonging.
Students and faculty continually dream up new customs to share with our community.
Read about a few of them below.
Lions & Unicorns
The original girls Sandia School divided students into two teams -- Lions and Unicorns -- for sports and other competitions. The mascots come from Lewis Carroll’s Through the Looking Glass about the traditional rivalry between the two heraldic animals.
These days, every student is either a Lion or a Unicorn for life! Designations follow family members, so if a parent or sibling attended Prep and was a Unicorn, for instance, all of their relatives will be Unicorns, too.
Spirit Week
During Spirit Week, Lions and Unicorns compete for points, pride, and a trophy in contests ranging from tug-of-war to whose cheers rack up the most decibels. Unicorns don blue and Lions don red to represent their team. On Color Day (the Thursday of Spirit Week), each grade level dresses in its assigned color, so you can easily pick out the seniors (pink!) from the juniors (white!).
Upper school students enjoy s’mores and revelry with a bonfire and a Homecoming Dance. All grade levels compete in the annual Lions vs. Unicorns Goodwill Drive, sponsored by the Helping Hands Community Service Group. Money raised from each full donation bin is used to buy shoes for local elementary school students in need. The week culminates with Sundevil Saturday, when Prep hosts volleyball and soccer tournaments. Everyone is invited to enjoy a free barbecue on the Quad, as well as live entertainment and an opportunity to participate in community service.
Back to School Camps
During the first week of school, each grade level heads off to bond with peers and teachers, participate in community service and academic enrichment, and have fun! Camp activities include ziplining, lake swimming, rafting, archery, a ropes course, volunteering, and much more.
Even if they didn’t know a soul before setting foot on campus, students return from camps with fast friends and lifelong memories.
Grandparents' Day
Each fall, Prep students honor their grandparents or “grandfriends” by hosting them on campus. Grandparents and grandfriends attend classes and activities, tour campus, and share lunch. Faculty and staff showcase the School’s latest, pioneering curricular and extracurricular options and also present our tried-and-true arts and academic offerings. By engaging our family and friends in this way, we reaffirm our sense of community and pay our respects to those grandparents and grandfriends whose time and energy contributed to our students attending Prep in the first place.
Alumni Weekend
Each July, we host Alumni Weekend, a series of events with more than 300 alumni and their families. This free, family-friendly weekend embodies the spirit of joy, connection, and community engagement for which Prep is known. Our Athletics Department honors exceptional Sundevil athletes and coaches by inducting them into our Sundevil Athletics Hall of Fame. Current students compete against alumni of all ages in soccer, basketball, and volleyball. Food, drinks, entertainment, and kids’ activities abound while former students reconnect with each other, faculty, and coaches.
Yearbook Day
On Yearbook Day, every student receives a yearbook and enjoys food and outdoor fun while they peruse the publication and spend time gathering signatures from friends and faculty.
The Nutcracker
The Sandia Prep Dance Company stages a full production of The Nutcracker every other year, with students, faculty, and even some parents participating.
Mardi Gras Parade
Our French classes celebrate Mardi Gras each year with a parade of student-made floats on the Quad, jazz band students playing “When the Saints Go Marching In,” costumes, and food.
Other Campus Traditions
Prep has countless other traditions for students to engage in fun and friendship: grade level movie nights on campus; Halloween week for middle schoolers; grade-level outdoor trips; grade-level promotion assembly, and more!
Middle School Traditions
8th Grade Dinner & Dance
Our 8th graders gather for dinner in April to celebrate completing middle school. Their parents put on the 8th Grade Dinner & Dance in the Russell Student Center, and students come to enjoy the evening, which includes guessing whose baby picture is whose.
Africa Day
Each year, our 6th grade celebrates an in-house field trip Africa Day with speakers, crafts, food, music, and events to complement what they are learning in their classes.
Grade-specific Trips
Throughout the school year, each middle school grade takes a class-specific outdoor trip. Sixth graders sled in the Great Sand Dunes National Park, 7th graders explore caves at El Malpais National Monument, and our eighth-grade class backpacks and camps in the Gila National Forest.
Senior Traditions
As our seniors prepare to wrap up their time at Prep -- for most, that’s seven years together -- they participate in many customs to celebrate their accomplishments and their relationships with faculty, staff, and each other.
Senior Sunrise
The year starts with one of our newest traditions, Senior Sunrise. Seniors bundle up, gather on our east soccer field to eat doughnuts, and watch the sun rise over the Sandia Mountains. It’s a fun way to kick off their final year together.
Senior Handprint Wall
During the first week of school, seniors make their mark on a wall near the front office by dipping their hands in red or blue paint, signing their names, and emblazoning the Senior Handprint Wall with their graduation year. The wall honors them for a full year until the next group of seniors comes along.
Junior/Senior Prom
Our Junior/Senior Prom is a mostly off-campus dinner-dance organized and paid for by the junior class for the seniors.
Senior Hill
On the seniors’ last day of classes before embarking on their Senior Capstone, they share a full day of food and fun outdoors, culminating in circling up and counting down to their final bell on Senior Hill.
Senior Capstone Experience
Seniors spend their final month pursuing a particular passion as their Senior Capstone Experience. Working independently off campus, under the guidance of a faculty supervisor, students choose a project to complete or a topic to research. Perhaps they shadow a professional in the field they hope to pursue or write original music. Senior Capstone Experience culminates in a night of student presentations for the school, parents, and the community.
