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A better way to do high school prom? Picking dates out of a hat?

It’s prom season in Georgia, as evidenced by all the teens in gowns and tuxes posing for photos in front of notable Atlanta landmarks and pouring out of limos in front of tony Buckhead eateries. (Special to the AJC)
It’s prom season in Georgia, as evidenced by all the teens in gowns and tuxes posing for photos in front of notable Atlanta landmarks and pouring out of limos in front of tony Buckhead eateries. (Special to the AJC)
By Maureen Downey
March 28, 2017

You could hardly go anywhere in Atlanta this weekend without running into glamorous teenagers. Prom season is underway. And what used to be a teenage dance has escalated into a mega industry with $1,200 gowns, rented limos, pre-prom photo shoots and expensive Buckhead dinners.

Another new twist on prom: The "promposal" where kids go to elaborate lengths to ask someone to the big night. Suitors fill lockers with flowers, spell out the question on the football field or enlist their dog to deliver a gilded invitation. While the invitee's answer is important, even more critical is whether the promposal strikes Instagram and Snapchat gold.

One Illinois school prefers a simpler system for prom dates: Randomly selected dates. In the 91-year-old tradition, students at the small Catholic high school choose names out of a hat to determine their prom date, turning the event into less of a couples thing and more of a schoolwide celebration.

To read more, go to the AJC Get Schooled blog.

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About the Author

Maureen Downey has written editorials and opinion pieces about local, state and federal education policy since the 1990s.

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