SR high school to host event outside
Masks replace prom gowns and tuxedos as the COVID-19 pandemic forces many high schools to cancel their proms. However, some high schools are improvising in hopes of finding a balance between social milestones and social distancing.
The Slippery Rock Area High School Junior-Senior Prom is slated for Friday at the high school's Troy-Alan Stadium.
Michelle Vinroe, a teacher at the high school and prom co-adviser with school nurse Joan Timko, said, “We are having it outside because of social-distancing concerns.”
Based on ticket sales, Vinroe expects the attendance to be around 160.
“We will have the grand march where the girls display their dresses. They'll come down the bleachers, and we hope to be able to livestream it for their parents,” she said.
The grand march runs from 6:30 to 7 p.m., and will be followed by court ceremonies and the prom, which will last until 10 p.m.
Since the event will be held under the lights on a football field, the theme changed from the original “Roaring '20s” to “One Last Night at the Rock.”
Vinroe said the prom committee hopes to have sports memorabilia among the decorations.
The cliche about spiking the punch bowl won't apply, she joked, because all refreshments will be individually sealed. She added that promgoers will follow any additional health directives from the state.
“We wanted to try to give them something special,” Vinroe said of the last hurrah for the pandemic-bedeviled Class of 2020. “Our administration was great in accommodating us.”
Karns City High School also still plans to have its prom July 17 at the Butler Country Club, according to Principal Brenda Noll, who added that about 100 students will be attending.
“We will have fewer students seated at each table, and the tables will be spread out to help with social distancing,” she said. Additionally, hand sanitizer will be available throughout the venue.
Students will be encouraged to bring their own masks, but masks will be available for all promgoers. Students will be asked to wear masks when they cannot maintain 6 feet of social distancing. The annual prom promenade at the high school has been canceled.
And while some schools prepare added precautions to protect promgoers, the plans for others remain up in the air.
Allegheny-Clarion Valley Superintendent David McDeavitt said the district has no plans in place for a prom at this point, but that could change depending on state COVID-19 directives.
Mars Area High School Principal Lindsay Rosswog echoed similar sentiments. She said the district is still working to organize a prom on campus at the end of the month. But school officials are holding off on a final decision because information is constantly changing.
“We hope to make our decision and announcement within the next week,” she added.
Moniteau High School is also planning to stage some sort of prom, although a date and other details remain unclear at this point.
Meanwhile, Union High School in Rimersburg joined the list of schools that canceled prom, although a district spokeswoman said a group of parents are planning to put together an event Friday on private property.
Kriss Glosser, Union High School principal, said students would be able to use the decorations and DJ service that were already paid for by the Class of 2019-20.
Knoch High School Principal Todd Trofimuk announced Monday that the school scrapped the prom as well as commencement ceremonies because of social-distancing concerns and fears of spreading the virus.
Earlier, Butler Area School District Superintendent Brian White said the school district would not be able to hold its postponed graduation ceremony or the prom planned for July.
White said, “It's incredibly disappointing that we were not able to have our traditional graduation ceremony or prom this year. I still hope to hold a senior recognition/Class of 2020 event in the future.”
Also canceling proms are Freeport and Seneca Valley high schools.
