Stephens Wins Leadership Sponsored TikTok Competition

Junior Katie Stephens, in collaboration with her choral group, won the Leadership-sponsored TikTok competition that concluded on April 25.

The competition consisted of 15 participants competing for votes in a bracket style tournament. The voting took place on the @camporedc Instagram account’s story, with the winner announced on April 26.

Some participants submitted well-written, well-timed sketches, while others decided to parody popular trends or remake certain songs.

Sophomore class president and competition participant Brody Crouch placed 2nd with a video of him recreating old pictures. “Even though I lost, I had too much fun looking at old family pics and at least trying to recreate them,” he said.

Crouch thinks that competitions like these will raise students’ spirits during this time. “I think it is crucial that Campo students either start or continue to be involved in these competitions, because we don’t get to see each other currently, and it’s always good to see a familiar school friend that you haven’t talked to in a while. Some students might feel isolated during this time and this gives them a social opportunity to be connected,” he explained.

Placing 1st with a final vote of 67% to 33% was Stephens, who created videos with clips of her friends in the choral program recreating classic songs. Stephens said that the ideas were not hard to come up with, as she already spends so much time on the app. “I brainstormed with my sisters and the group that I did the TikToks with. We liked to take some of the ideas and make them more personal to cCmpo and quarantine,” she said.

Stephens felt that the competition showcased her classmates’ creative sides. “It’s a fun opportunity to see everyone’s creativity and provides a slight distraction from what’s happening in the world,” said Stephens.

Leadership teacher Lindsay Webb-Peploe said, “I think the competition was a success- I don’t have anything to compare it to, but people signed up and seemed to enjoy it.”

Webb-Peploe recognized the competition’s ability to foster a positive community among isolated teens. “I think it is really hard to connect right now, and anything that lets us see each other is important. It is easy to retreat back into our own world’s and this allows us a window into other’s,” she said.

Webb-Peploe is hopeful that more competitions like these will take place, although right now she believes it is important to be “living in the present and focused on each day.”