This year, prom returned free of changing expectations and restrictions for “a Night of Stars” on May 14 at Pinstripes, junior Sara Kahn said.

Over 700 students attended, including both seniors as well as their dates, Mark Maranto, Assistant Principal of Student Activities added.

With the guidance of Maranto, Student Council took the lead when it came to planning the event, Interim Principal Dr. Rosanne Williamson said. At the beginning of the year, when the process of planning and confirming the venue began, there were some concerns about Covid-19, but Williamson explained that these were resolved.

“[Prom was] fully in-person without doing two shifts or limiting attendance,” Williamson said.

This year, Khan worked as a student planner to ensure seniors would have the best prom experience possible. Along with the rest of the juniors on the Student Council, Khan made decisions about the dance, ranging from which dessert was best to what the theme would be. Khan explained that Student Council’s juniors do this every year.

Senior Stephanie Pitterman attended the event, and was very appreciative that she was able to go in comparison to years prior.

“I’m glad we got [to attend] prom this year,” Pitterman said. “It was a really nice day. [I enjoyed the aspect of] the after parties and preparing [for the event].”

This year’s experience has been very different from that of 2020 South alum Natalie Zintchenko, who, in the spring of her senior year, received an email notifying her and her classmates that prom was canceled due to Covid-19. This came as a disappointment, Zintchenko said, as prom had seemed like an important milestone that they were missing out on.

“I’m happy for the seniors and juniors that are able to experience a formal [dance] with friends,” Zintchenko said. “Honestly, your high school experience is what you make of it, [an aspect of that] is you going to many events offered by the school.”

Student Council worked to ensure that prom was a success by putting together playlists and choosing decorations to transform Pinstripes into a glamorous ‘60s red carpet, Khan explained.

Additionally Student Council sampled different potential food items, and made sure to take into account which would be the least likely to ruin a prom dress Khan noted.

“[At prom I was] most excited to see all our hard work pay off, for everything to run smoothly, and for everyone to be extremely happy to see each other,” Khan said.