“Get loud, it’s senior prom!” a student shouted from the red carpet in the Dean Dome on Saturday night at 8:30 p.m., while UNC’s first annual Senior Prom kicked off. Some moms dropped couples off, friends were taking photos and everyone was admiring each other’s formal wear. Safe to say, it felt like prom.
Upon entering, the event’s organizers could be seen looking proudly at the decorations they’d spent months preparing — black, red and gold balloons, colorful music-synched lights and a photo booth — as seniors excitedly strolled onto the entrance’s red carpet to tunes like Ariana Grande’s “God is a woman.”
Senior Class President Timothy McLendon was the main organizer of Senior Prom. With the help of his vice president and other committee members, he’d been able to turn his campaign’s biggest dream into reality. McLendon said that having graduated high school in 2021, his goal for Senior Prom was to rectify lost experiences.
“A lot of people talk about the class of 2020,” McLendon said. “But they forget about the fact that at least class of 2020 had a senior year, for the most part. Class of 2021 didn’t have a senior year at all. They missed out on everything.”
McLendon, like most of the high school class of 2021, was hoping to fill the mental gap where prom memories were meant to be.
“In American culture, [prom] is probably the most nostalgic thing that we have conceived of,” McLendon said. “And not having that element of looking back to my high school prom, I can't tell my kids about my high school prom. And that's such a pivotal moment in people's life. So I'm like, let's give us another chance to have that moment of nostalgia.”
At the event, free food — the cost of which was covered by the $15 entry fee — could be found around every corner, from cake pops to savory caprese kabobs. Every student also received a free cup of gambling tokens.
The prom’s theme, “Casino Night,” was complete with poker, roulette and blackjack. Students could play for prizes, rather than money, provided by the Carolina Alumni Association. A separate event called “Prelude To Prom” was held in The Carolina Club during the hours leading up to the event, serving more food and cocktails.
Senior Class Vice President Imani Chabikuli worked alongside McLendon. They both expressed the difficulty of planning the event, especially having to rent out the Dean Dome, which came with a not-so-little price tag.
