By Sean Deane ‘21

The Crusaders have been through a crazy year.  COVID-19, masks, hybrid learning, and scrambled sports schedules have already created a very different experience for students than in years past.  Prom is only a few weeks away, and it will not be spared from the wackiness.

This year’s prom will be held at Brother Rice.  It will either be in the gym or in tents set up on school property.  The event will be catered by food trucks.

This is vastly different from the typical Brother Rice prom which was held at a hotel downtown in a ballroom.

The seniors’ feelings about the change in scenery this year have varied. Some like the idea of being closer to home.  It will be easier to commute to and from the dance, and it makes planning events after prom much easier. Senior Adam Homel said, “I really like that prom is so close to home this year because we will not have to waste so much time driving all the way downtown.”

Many students do not share Adam’s optimism.  Some seniors are upset that they will not get the traditional prom experience and compare this year’s dance to a homecoming with only seniors.

Senior Kevin Lynch said, “Although I know that there’s nothing more that the school could do, I really wish that we had a normal prom this year.  Since we are all coming back to school next week, I thought prom would be back to normal as well.”

The administration has done everything that they could to host a prom this year.  Most venues cannot host prom due to COVID capacity, and senior interest in attending the event seems to be much lower than in years past.  Despite this, the school has set up a pretty cool dance for those who choose to attend. Senior Kyle Gallagher said, “I was afraid that we wouldn’t even have a prom this year.  I don’t care where it is; I’m just happy that we get to have one.”

Hopefully the senior class can make the most out of this very unique prom.