On Feb. 28, juniors and seniors eagerly leaned forward in their seats, awaiting the highly anticipated prom 2025 announcement. Normally students come away focused on the night’s theme, but this year there was only one takeaway from the assembly: “How am I going to afford prom?”
In a shocking twist of events, the price of prom tickets has been raised from the usual $70 to $50K, leaving students wondering if they can even afford to attend the event at all.
However, the price is made more reasonable with the limited-time discount deal. If you purchase your tickets before March 7, you only have to pay $49,975. Of course with tax that does round up to $50,125. But, parking is provided adjacent to the venue, so it’s kind of worth it.
When questioned about their decision to raise ticket prices, Trinity’s Student Council said it was a necessary evil to make the event better than ever.
“Our goal isn’t to exclude students from attending prom, but rather make the experience more enjoyable for everyone,” Student Body President Connor Nanus said. “This year we are going all out. I’m talking DJ. I’m talking sushi boat buffet. I’m talking real photo booth from the 1920s. I mean we dropped 20K on the red carpet Glambot guy alone.”
While Nanus is all smiles about the price increase, not everyone is too pumped about the change, especially Prom Chair Sophia Scheinberg.
“Everyone is complaining about the change in price and blaming me personally, but I had no control over the decision,” Scheinberg said. “The money isn’t even going into the prom budget. It’s all being used to pay off debt from the Luau.”
Nanus, when asked about the accusation, claimed the Luau only racked up a small debt of 100K, and the majority of prom ticket profits would indeed be going into the event. But only time will tell if prom will be worth its hefty price tag. In the meantime, students are desperately racking up funds to buy tickets.
For some, the goal of prom has provided them with an opportunity for exponential economic growth. DECA Vice President and finance bro Nicholas Saraiva, for example, has started his own multi-layered energy drink business.
“I’ve raised more than enough money for prom by now with my new business, Big Nick Energy,” Saraiva said. “My experience with DECA has made me a shark in the industry. Some have called it a pyramid scheme, but I just call that good business.”
For others, however, raising money for prom has only put them further in debt. Junior Owen Raffa has lost 20K and counting in the crypto market trying to make enough to afford a ticket.
“I started investing in crypto last year, and I lost a couple thousand, so I stopped,” Raffa said. “But I thought this time would be different, new year, new me, you know. So far, though, the market just hasn’t been in my favor. But I know it’ll bounce back soon, so I have just kept investing. You know what they say, buy low, sell high, and I’ve certainly been buying low!”
By far the most common avenue of fundraising for upperclassmen, though, has been sports betting. While already wildly popular, the regularity of investments among juniors and seniors has skyrocketed exponentially.
“I’d dabbled in Fliff long before prom, but the goal of buying a ticket really just provided me with the opportunity I needed to excel,” junior Ashton Paul said. “So far, I’ve lost a couple grand in ventures, but all the experts know that’s just the way it goes sometimes. I’m confident if I just stick with it, I’ll have more than enough for prom in no time.”
A few students have gone the most logical route of getting an after-school job to afford their ticket. However, the quick turnaround time for buying tickets has made it difficult for students to balance school and work, leading to some drastic decisions.
“I started working at Mathnasium last semester,” senior Jackie Stenzel said. “When the price of prom tickets came out, I started taking doubles. But I quickly realized I wasn’t gonna make enough money in time, so I dropped out of school. This way I could pursue my Mathnasium career full time to buy my ticket. I am worried though that my upcoming shift may overlap with the night itself.”
In the midst of this financial crisis, the logical thing to do seems to be to skip prom. But, when asked about this alternative, students seemed diametrically opposed.
