by Mike Knaak
Sartell High School students planning this spring’s prom are working to make it more affordable for all students.
Through Monday, Feb. 28, prom organizers will be collecting gently used prom dresses as well as cash donations for tuxedo rental so cost is not a barrier for students who want to attend.
Staff coordinators for the event, Joey Vanek and Kristy Gosch, surveyed students for what they want prom to look like and one repeating theme was prom has been cost-prohibitive for some students.
Dresses can be dropped off at:
Howie’s in St. Stephen
Sartell Community Center
Sartell High School
Sartell Vibe
Second Street Coffeehouse
St. Stephen City Hall from 5-8 p.m. on Mondays.
To donate cash online, go to https://sartell.revtrak.net/Donations/#/v/prom-donations or click on this QR code.
One of the student planners, senior Haile Eibes, says organizers want to include more of the community in the prom. “Sometimes people have dresses they aren’t using,” Eibes said. People sell them, but sometimes they forget about them. Now they can donate the dress. “We want help so everyone can go to the prom.”
Student organizer Allie Engle added “when are you going to wear a prom dress again?”
Prom expenses add up fast. A new dress can cost more than $400. Tuxedo rental runs $150 to $200. A nice dinner for two at a restaurant costs $60.
Prom planners also looked at other ways to cut costs.
“A few months ago, we got the ball rolling with a survey on music and a theme,” Engle said. “Would you rather have a ticket with food or cheaper ticket without food.” Students preferred a cheaper ticket without food. As a result, this year’s ticket price will be cheaper than the typical $50-$60 person.
“People want cheaper options so we can make this more affordable,” Engle said.
The Covid pandemic disrupted prom plans the past two years. The 2020 event was canceled and in 2021, a smaller, seniors-only event took place at the high school.
The Sartell Community Center will be the site for this year’s prom starting with the Grand March at 4 p.m. Saturday, May 21. The event will take advantage of the Community Center’s location with the Grand March on the trail between the center and the lake.
“We’ve been thinking of ways to make it more of a community thing,” Eibes said. “Parents can bring lawn chairs and watch.”
After a break for dinner, students return at 8 p.m. for music. Plans call for a DJ inside and a live band for what Gosch calls “a more relaxed atmosphere outside.” The prom theme is Enchanted Forest.
Gosch and Vanek will work with counselors in the coming weeks to identify students who would benefit from the donations and to set up times to look at the dresses. If there are more cash donations than needed for tux rentals, the money will be used for gift cards at local restaurants.
