By Shea Lessing (Class of 2012)
As spring approaches and the amount left of school dwindles down, for seniors and juniors in Framingham High School this can be a stressful time. It is a tradition every year that a prom and cotillion is made for seniors and juniors. Everyone wants to be a part of this enjoyment but for some the costs can really play a part on these expensive events.
Cotillion and prom in Framingham High School can easily cost a student hundreds of dollars. Tickets alone can range from $60 to $100 plus based on the event in which the student is attending. Not only do the students have to worry about the high price of the tickets but they also have to worry about dresses, tuxedos, transportation, makeup, hair, flowers and other pricey costs.
For girls, the cost of the dress can sometimes be up to $400, which for some families is hard to put down. For boys, the cost of the tuxedo can easily exceed $100 and can also very expensive. After interviewing a couple of FHS girls, the average price for the entire event ranged from $300 to $500. “I obviously want to look good because this is a huge event that will be a major memory when I am older, but everything is just so expensive these days,” says Katherine Looby, a Framingham High School junior.
For guys, most of the time they have the pressure of renting their tux, paying for their date’s tickets, and paying for the transportation of themselves and their dates. “I feel bad not buying my date a ticket, but it is not my fault I do not have the money. Tickets for prom are $100 this year which is a lot for one working person that is buying their own ticket alone,” says an FHS senior boy.
Not only students are affected by these enormous costs, but in many cases the parents of the high school students are affected as well. Having a senior son attending FHS, Mr. Nugent said, “I think proms are expensive and they are really just a right of passage. There is a lot of diversity at FHS, which also leads to economic diversity too. Personally I do not mind paying for it, but sometimes for a less economically stable family, this is a tough cost to pay when they have to be worrying about other costs.”
Based on cotillion prices last year, FHS senior Jonathan Silva says, “I feel like prom is just more. It is still money out of your pocket. They were talking about moving prom because it is too expensive to be held in Boston. In a couple of years I bet they are going to change the location of prom to the Sheraton Hotel because of budget cuts.” This quote really shows how expensive prices are now, even though last year was expensive as well.
Overall, the Framingham High School community is clearly struggling trying to afford and come up with these large amounts of money for these fun events. It is school tradition for juniors and seniors to have prom and junior prom, therefore these events are still very popular. Prices for prom and cotillion are slowly increasing due to the economy’s demand for higher prices.
