Watkins Mill will be having its annual prom, on Friday, May 18, at Glen Echo Park. The event will begin at 8pm and this year’s theme will be “The Great Gatsby.”

The junior class committee has been planning for this event since April of 2017 and are “trying to get freshmen, sophomores, and seniors to help on the night of prom,” junior class president Alexandra Aucoin said. Both Aucoin and and junior class vice-president Andre Tulloch led the committee with junior class sponsor and social studies teacher Brittany McIntyre.

“We had multiple meetings and looked through multiple sites to look for ‘Great Gatsby’ themed decorations,” Tulloch said. The juniors chose this year’s theme after consulting with the seniors. The committee selected food, decor, etc. while McIntyre worked with the vendors. They met every Thursday during STEP during the school year to discuss themes, catering, decorations and music.

The committee has also helped students who are attending with finding dresses and tuxedos. An Instagram account was created for girls to post their prom dresses so they can avoid wearing the same dress as anyone else. They posted flyers from Men’s Wearhouse for tuxedos as well. “I’m the costume designer in the theater department, so I could help people find their outfit,” junior class secretary Michael Mallonga said.

So far, they have gotten the caterer and decorations. They have a limited budget, but most of the money goes to the food. One thing the committee would like to improve for next year’s planning is to begin the processes of planning prom early. “If we start planning earlier compared to this year, [planning prom] would go a lot smoother,” junior Dominique Kennedy said.

McIntyre would want to hear opinions from a larger group of students. “The more voices are included in the process, the better,” McIntyre added.

Mallonga and Kennedy have been helping McIntyre sell tickets in B110 during STEP. They will be available until Wednesday. The cost for the tickets are $50. When the students buy their tickets, they should make sure that they read through the “Prom Best Practices” handout that they will pick up from McIntyre. It has important information such as directions and rules.

“Don’t be too preoccupied about the weather. The venue is covered, so it should be fine. Other than that, just have a good time,” McIntyre added.