High school is a place full of differences — different cliques, classes, and grades. However, one night brings everyone together, making them forget these distinctions: Prom. Prom has been a longtime tradition commencing in the early 1900s. In nearby schools, like East Longmeadow and Belchertown, there is either only a senior prom or separate proms for juniors and seniors. Unlike most, Ludlow has a combined prom. 

It has been like this for many years. Juniors would plan prom for the seniors and give the seniors one final gift before sending them off to graduation, a prom planned for them. But, there has been controversy clouding Ludlow High School these past couple of weeks. It has come to the junior’s attention that a significant prom decision has been planned without them. One of these decisions has been where the 2025 prom will be held.

For the past few years, Ludlow’s prom has been held at the Log Cabin. From getting to know the owners of the venue, to getting comfortable with everything they have to offer, we already have an established relationship with them. These past few days, the juniors found out from sophomore class officers that the location of the prom has been changed from the Log Cabin to the Springfield Country Club 

Some juniors were frustrated and confused by this sudden change of location due to the Log Cabin having been the seemingly perfect setting for next year’s prom. 

So why would the class of 2026 want to change the venue? 

Sophomore Maddy Marques, president of the class of 2026, stated, “We as a council voted and decided to change the venue to Springfield Country Club (SCC) for a couple of reasons. Next year’s seniors have been to the Log Cabin and we wanted something different. When touring SCC we decided that it was beautiful, and a step up from the Log Cabin. We have also heard complaints in the past about the food at the Log Cabin, and SCC is known for its food so we figured that we could try it out… The bigger picture was trying something new, we wanted to do things differently!” 

Marques also went on to say, “There was nothing holding us to the Log Cabin besides tradition.”

Since 2019, Ludlow has decided to host their prom at the Log Cabin making it a tradition. Knowing what to expect and what they offer has been a big factor in the repeating decision to return to the Log Cabin for prom. I have attended the Log Cabin for the 2024 prom and it wasn’t anything less than beautiful. 

Junior, Caliana Blackburn says, “It was almost the perfect venue for prom, with a lot of room and many different places for photos.” The windows look out into the vast view of mountains. The patio is precisely decorated, ready for any pictures to be taken. 

As Marques had mentioned the food did not have great reviews. But, if you go to prom just for the food then maybe you should skip prom and go to McDonald’s instead. The food is not a big factor in prom as you are realistically only eating for fifteen minutes and then going to either snap photos or dance with your friends. Change may also be needed though. 

If food is a big deal for you at prom then Springfield Country Club may have it and you wouldn’t be having to stop at a McDonald’s. Also having the same atmosphere as the Log Cabin with better food could be an upgraded experience for prom.

I can admit that May 4th, compared to all the other years, was early for prom. Although only two days apart, May 2nd could be considered very early for prom. 

Prom this year was sunny in the morning and had the perfect temperature before 4:00 pm, but after that, especially at the Log Cabin, there was no sunset and it was windy, which admittedly, was not ideal for pictures. This opted everyone to stay inside and stay on the dance floor when they would have been outside taking pictures. 

Obviously, we cannot predict the weather nine months from now; however, there is a greater risk of bad weather in early May.

Prom has also been switched to Friday for next year. Although the day of prom always gets shuffled between the two busiest nights, Friday and Saturday, 9/10 people would much rather Prom on a Saturday. I went to prom on a Friday this year. 

It was nothing to complain about, but prom on a Saturday is comparatively better. On a Saturday, you can wake up late without any eyebags, go to breakfast with all your friends, and get ready at your own pace. Junior, Sophia Scyocurka agrees: “Going to breakfast in the morning before prom was one of my favorite memories I had that day.” On a Friday, only getting out at 11, if you even choose to leave, you are already a victim to the infectious school air. 

Maybe other schools have prom this early in the year but Ludlow should not fall under that category again.

Unlike other schools, Ludlow decides to invite the Juniors to the Seniors prom. Like every year, Seniors get to decide the theme, approve the date, and approve the location. They can also aid the Juniors with any questions because they have planned it the year before. 

Many students are upset about how our class was not asked before this change was made but, Junior Jack Favata, President to the Class of 2026 states “When in the planning stages, we really only reached out to the seniors to pick the prom theme. From there we had to make a lot of the decisions ourselves.” 

Again, this happened because we kept the location the same. Although it is good to integrate the upperclassmen for prom, sometimes it is not always able to happen. 

Planning these events is never easy and it is impossible to make everyone happy. Furthermore, not one person, or people, should be blamed for a decision that is against what they want. 

Marques closes with this: “By no means did we want to make people upset, if anything we believe the Springfield Country Club is a great choice and if people are open minded will enjoy it as much as we do.” 

To continue, all of the juniors have to stay open minded. For me it is hard to accept change, I’m sure it is for many others. But, this isn’t the first time that the location has been changed for prom and it probably is not going to be the last. 

Keeping a positive attitude and focusing on having a memorable experience with your friends is exponentially better than worrying about where you will be for only four hours of your life.