A new prom venue, the Valley Mansion, hopes to fulfill the expectations of unsatisfied students after the disappointment of last year’s prom.
The new venue, the Valley Mansion located in Cockeysville, MD, will bring various fresh aspects created to resolve and satisfy students. French teacher Stephanie South is the advisor of the junior class council organizing the 2014 Prom. South booked the new venue after hearing continuous complaints about Wisehaven, last year’s venue.
“It’ll be a buffet style dinner, so kids can eat whenever they want. They don’t have to wait to be served,” said South. “We also have a new DJ and a new photo booth company coming.”
The buffet style intends to solve the issue of slow service. It will be open from 7:00 p.m. the time of students’ arrival, to 9:00 p.m. and will include an option for everyone: fish, chicken, steak, and pasta. Junior Josh Attig attended prom at Wisehaven as a sophomore and believes dinner was ruined not only by the service, but also by the quality.
“Hopefully it will [solve the problem,] as long as the food is better,” said Attig.
The buffet isn’t the only part of Prom that is making students excited. With graduation approaching in June, May will be the last full month of high school for the senior class.
“[I’m excited for] the fact that it’s the end of the year and the last chance for our senior class to spend time together,” said Fancher. “Since we’ve been in school together since kindergarten, some of us, this is kind of like the farewell.”
Even though some seniors may have had the opportunity to attend prom all four years of their high school career, this will be the first time for everyone experiencing a new venue. The food, large space, service and decorations will not come without one drawback, the price of tickets.
“It [the price] is going to go up,” said South. “I am not sure by how much yet, but it should not be any more than 20 dollars.”
The junior class council has fundraised to lessen the cost and will continue to raise money as May approaches. In February, “Party at Gatsby’s” was determined as the theme for Prom 2014. With the recent release of the movie and most students having read the American classic as juniors, it seems popular with students throughout Susquehannock.
Wisehaven, located in York, PA, was the host of last year’s prom. With complaints of bad service, lack of space and inadequate food, students left the dance disappointed in many aspects. Senior Eric Johnson went to prom at Wisehaven as a junior last year.
“I didn’t really think the food was that good,” said Johnson. “It was hot the entire time, and the DJ wasn’t really that great.”
Perhaps the largest complaint was the slow service. With two floors and over 35 tables, some weren’t served until 9:00 p.m., nearly two hours after arriving. While many students may have dwelled on the lack of service, senior Makenzie Fancher put aside the negatives and focused on having a good time.
“We were one of the last tables [to be served]. We didn’t get our food, and everyone was dancing,” said Fancher. “We just ate fast, and we weren’t really hungry at that point. There were a lot of people, and I didn’t really want to complain. I just wanted to have fun.”
Whether it’s the food, venue, theme or simply spending time with friends, there is something for everyone to get excited about this year. Changing the venue doesn’t seem to change the idea that most people only get two proms in a lifetime-making each one unforgettable.
