Class Color Day, an IHS tradition since the 90s, has historically marked the end of Spirit Week with a pep rally in the outdoor stadium or the gymnasium. Class Color Day has been a day of disorder in the past: in 2003, seniors lit things on fire in H-courtyard; in 2005, students brought beer to school and poured it in the hallways; even last year, students were suspended for general misconduct and being drunk. Earlier this year, the administration decided to postpone the pep rally to the spring, so that the rally could be held outdoors in the newly renovated Joe Moresco Stadium and could feature both the fall and spring sports teams. However, many seniors felt "robbed" of their opportunity to celebrate their final year in high school, according to flyers circulated on the morning of Color Day.
Coordinated largely through the IHS '09 Facebook group, a large group of seniors met out in the front parking lot before school to conduct their own rally, marching into the cafeteria at approximately 8:40 a.m., by Principal Joe Wilson's estimation. The crowd of about 100, according to Wilson, then marched through the hallways of G-building until they reached H-courtyard, where they began chanting "'09" loudly.