It is universally acknowledged that prom is the quintessential high school experience. It is a tradition expressed in classic high school movies. It’s almost a benchmark for teens on having made it to the final years of their public education experience. However, this benchmark isn’t worth the cost for the experience delivered. The main sticking point is the outrageous price. 

Prom tickets, at the time of publishing, cost $75. In the case of a male suitor, they need to purchase a ticket and tuxedo, which on the cheaper side, costs $200 to get made properly. A fancy dinner can cost $40 if they’re paying for a date. On the topic of a date, if they feel compelled to have one, that boosts their ticket price to $150. When looking at the sum of all the costs that may be incurred by students, it can easily begin to add up to a few weeks’ worth of wages. Even if their parents cover the cost, it is still a significant amount of money. The reason for this price is also unclear.

The price for prom isn’t justified. Yes, the school set it at South Fork Ranch this year, an admittedly nice venue, but, aside from the theme, that’s the only information that the school released. On all of the promotional material, it only lists the theme, location and ticket price. There isn’t any information regarding the music accommodations, any beverages they may provide or anything beyond the theme, location, and price. 

For the extreme costs seen at prom, it is hard to see how it will be justified by the memorability and tradition factor. If the school offered some more information about what exactly the ticket cost and money raised for prom are going towards, that may justify the price. However, in its current state, prom is overly expensive.