Preprom. Taken by Ken Stokes on May 20, 2005, courtesy Wikipedia Commons.
One of the most anticipated nights on the teenage social calendar is nearing, as seniors the three local public high schools gear up for their last hurrah — the senior prom.
Dos Pueblos High will be first this year, with its prom May 14 in Warren Hall at Earl Warren Showgrounds. The theme will remain a secret until the day of the prom, adviser Kelly Choi said.
Senior class officers Alisa Lee, Eileen Peyton, Janae Royston, Jessica Sanchez and Monica Shaner are planning the event, said Choi. The PTSA is also sponsoring an after-prom party in the dome at the showgrounds.
San Marcos High’s prom is May 21 at Fess Parker’s DoubleTree Resort. Plans have been in the works since the summer, said senior class president Sarah McGinnis, whose cabinet team of Amanda Coyle, Annick Lamb and Heather Van Buren picked the theme, “Central Park, Some Kind of Wonderful.”
“It’s like the New York skyline, and the ficus trees and all of that,” said McGinnis. A San Marcos tradition, the prom tickets will be souvenir key chains. Attendees will receive souvenir mugs with the prom logo on it, and names of the graduating class listed on the backside. “We’re also doing little mint cases with the prom logo,” said McGinnis, who has a $2,000 budget to work with for gifts and decorations.
Janine Pugh, a parent who is also a party planner, is helping coordinate the decorations, McGinnis said. “It’s really great, she’s awesome. It would not be the same without her,” she said.
The San Marcos PTSA will host an after-prom party at the Elks Club.
Most people will at least stop by the after-party, McGinnis predicted.
“I wouldn’t say everyone stays there the whole night, but they definitely come by and do the gambling and things like that,” she said.
Santa Barbara High’s prom will be held at Fess Parker’s DoubleTree Resort on May 28. The theme is Casablanca, like the movie, said assistant principal David Hodges.
Betsy Turner is the parent chairwoman for the prom and the PTSA is planning an after-party at Zodo’s Bowling & Beyond, Hodges said.
Usually people go to dinner before the prom in groups, said McGinnis, “unless they’re like dating or something.” But before dinner there are pictures to be taken, with parents and others.
Limousines are popular modes of transportation, but “people have done the LandShark, or used the trolley, all sorts of stuff,” said McGinnis, who went to the prom last year as a junior.
“Being a senior girl, I mean prom’s like the first thing on your mind once school ends junior year. No one likes to admit that, but that’s basically what it comes down to,” she said.
“(The prom) is a huge deal. Most people go.”