Siloam Springs High School's annual homecoming parade will be held from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Wednesday.
The parade will begin at Southside Elementary, go east on West Tulsa Street and then north on South Mount Olive Street to West University Street and then down South Broadway Street to the Chautauqua Amphitheater, according to a map of the route posted on Facebook.
Instead of holding the parade on Friday before the homecoming game, it will be held on Wednesday, according to Assistant Principal Brittany Haden-Chomphosy, who is organizing the event.
"It's really hard on the football players to be out in the hot sun all day walking the two-plus miles before a football game," said Haden-Chomphosy. "So this was hopefully to kind of transition, make it a little bit easier on them."
Haden-Chomphosy also said that offering it after work will give people in the community the chance to watch the parade who would not usually attend.
Principal Rob Lindley added that changing the parade date and time will help with school congestion at the end of the day.
Along with the parade, there will be a pep rally at the amphitheater after the parade, Haden-Chomphosy said. The pep rally will be short to be considerate to local churches and church services, Lindley said.
There are no plans to require masks to participate in the parade; instead, the high school will do the best they can to space out the participants, said Haden-Chomphosy.
"We're okay either way," Haden-Chomphosy said. "We ask people to use good discretion."
There will also be an assembly at 2 p.m. on Friday at the Panther Activity Center, Lindley said.
This year's homecoming queen will be announced at the assembly, Haden-Chomphosy said.
The theme for homecoming this year is music, Haden-Chomphosy said. Country music will be the theme for the parade, she said. Monday's theme will be electric dance music; Tuesday's will be rock and roll, and Thursday's will be rap, Haden-Chomphosy said.
While this is Haden-Chomphosy's first time coordinating Siloam Springs' homecoming, it is not her first homecoming event.
When she was in high school, Haden-Chomphosy was on the Colors Day court at Springdale High School, Haden-Chomphosy said.
"I love it all," Haden-Chomphosy said. "I can't wait."