At the University of Maryland, College Park, the class of 2024 held a special prom event on a recent Friday at the Stamp Student Union to recapture the high school milestone they missed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The event, themed around "The Great Gatsby," saw a turnout of 900 seniors, selling out tickets rapidly due to high demand.
This festive gathering was especially poignant for these students, who had their high school experiences abruptly interrupted by the pandemic, losing traditional rites of passage such as prom, graduation ceremonies, and other senior-year activities. Many in this cohort began their college journey under similar, constrained conditions.
The college seniors, now legal adults, embraced the chance to experience prom without the usual teenage subterfuges, celebrating amidst music and balloons, wearing elegant dresses and sharp suits. The prom provided a sense of closure and a final celebratory moment as undergraduates, a stark contrast to their virtual proms during high school, which left many feeling unsatisfied.
The initiative for this event was taken by the Student Senior Council last summer, aiming to offer a redo of the missed experiences and add a unique memory to their college life amidst ongoing national protests and campus disruptions which, thankfully, did not impact the event.