It’s the last hurrah of a school career! Even in a Covid-dominated nation, many have brainstormed endlessly in an effort to give the graduating class as close to a regular prom as possible.

“The biggest problem is the uncertainty surrounding so many things–especially the limits on capacity,” says Kristyna Rocha, a teacher and organizer for the Class of 2021. “ Whereas this would be less of a problem with a smaller graduating class, the size of our senior class (and the overwhelming response we got from kids wanting to attend) makes the uncertainty very challenging. No one knows exactly what the limits will look like come June, so we have to plan and hope for the best.”

She mentioned the overwhelming response to a Google form that had been created and pushed over email and Canvas announcements for all students to see. This was especially important for the seniors. The response had been absolutely great, with 555 students total answering the form’s questions. And the consensus seems to lean in favor of attending prom, with 66.3% voting that they’re interested. In regards to outdoor versus indoor, 81.5% of respondents were comfortable with an outdoor event and only 54.2% were comfortable indoors. Understandably the latter would provide significantly more risk, and so it would be significantly less popular of a choice. 62.8% of respondents also noted that they would be comfortable eating at prom. 73.9% of respondents would still be willing to attend even if the event were limited to EBHS seniors only.

So, overall at least half of the respondents were comfortable with some version of prom, but nothing can be guaranteed just yet. Still, great thought continues to be put into everything. “Our hope is that we can hold an event that is both safe and fun, so that seniors can have the sendoff they have dreamed of for years” says Ms. Rocha. Everyone’s health is top priority, and though nothing is set in stone, if cases go down then we can possibly look forward to some kind of prom event.