Inconvenient prom date throws a wrench in prom experience 

Curly hair, lots of pictures and a room full of dancing, prom took place last Friday night, May 10, at Stephen’s College. Some think that finding a date and discovering the perfect dress to wear is the most stressful thing about the prom experience.
But this year, prom was on a Friday night instead of the usual Saturday night, which caused people to re-arrange their schedules, skip school and have less time to get dazzled up for their big night.
“I tried to get a hair appointment that was after school,” junior Samantha Turek said. “But most salons were already booked at those times, so I scheduled it during my second hour class.”

In previous years, students going to prom had the relaxing experience of having the whole day Saturday to get their hair and makeup done, tie their bowtie just right and have enough time to take pictures with friends and family before they take off for the selected venue.
This year more people skipped the whole day or part of the day at school over any other day that week. Because of this, many seniors think prom should never be on a Friday night again in the upcoming years.
Senior Morgan Bumby believes it would be more convenient to have prom on a Saturday.
“Sports practices are usually right after school gets out,” Bumby said. “So that became a conflict when I was trying to schedule appointments and figure out if I’d be able to practice or not.”
She also said many sports have Saturday morning practices, so it was hard to get the full experience of prom when you want to make sure you get enough sleep to perform well.
“I didn’t want to let my team down since we have districts coming up,” Bumby said, “so I went to bed earlier than I would have expected to on my prom night.”
If prom was on a Saturday night, there would be a smaller chance to run into problems like they did this year. Also, seniors would get to schedule their day around prom festivities, instead of planning prom around school. Prom is more than a school dance to some people because it’s their last chance to have the whole class together, and end the year on a great note while surrounded by friends.
Bumby was one of many who scheduled her day around school, which led to her missing classes to get both her hair and makeup done for prom.
“You have school every day, but your senior prom only comes once,” Bumby said. “I went to and from school from my hair appointment, trying to fit in everything I could.”
Senior Brian Gunter was aware of how stressed all of his friends were becoming in anticipation for the big night. With most missing school for appointments such as Bumby did, Gunter thought it felt more like the usual homecoming dance than prom.
“Because everyone had to get ready so quickly,” Gunter said, “prom almost felt like it had less importance because of the little preparation we had.”
The limited time to prepare for the dance didn’t stop senior Josie Camden from having an amazing time. Though she was rushed more than she would have liked, she said it made getting ready all the more fun.
“All of my friends were all multitasking,” Camden said, “zipping each other’s dresses, throwing clothes at one another, and all sorts of that to make us move faster. It was pretty funny.”
Camden also says prom will be one of her fondest memories of high school.
“Knowing that this is the last time for all the seniors to be together before we graduate is bittersweet,” Camden said. “Prom was the best ending to the best three years at Rock Bridge.”

By Lauren Jamison
Seniors, what was your favorite prom memory?