Spring has just begun and along with it comes prom season. Bring on the promposals, long dresses, corsages and expensive restaurants! For many upperclassmen, prom is an event to look forward to and plan down to the most intricate details. But, of course, this event is generally reserved for juniors and seniors.

Homecoming, the first and only dance automatically available for underclassmen, takes place very early on in the school year, in Sept. Now, kicking off the school year with a school-wide dance is a great idea; some people take it as a chance to socialize and meet new people and a dance in September seems like a wonderful idea. Because homecoming is the only dance for sophomores and freshmen to participate in, I started to wonder if it would be better to offer another school-wide dance at West High later in the school year for everyone. Both City and Liberty High offer a total of three school dances for students, while West High only offers homecoming and prom.

Many believe school dances are already awkward and the earliness in the year of homecoming may cause it to be even more unpleasant. Having a school dance so early on takes away some chances of meeting new people through school and extracurricular activities. Freshmen may feel less inclined to socialize as much in this setting since they are just starting to get into the rhythm of high school.

Would you rather have two school dances available at West High or three? Comment reasons why below.

— West Side Story (@wsspaper) May 2, 2018

The second school dance hosted at West is prom. Prom is a wonderful opportunity for upperclassmen to socialize with the group of people they have been studying with for years and is a great way to close the year as well as give the seniors one last hurrah before graduation and college. Something similar to prom, but less formal should be offered to the entire school. If a less formal and more flexible school dance were offered towards the middle of the school year, it would give all grades the opportunity to socialize and meet each other with less awkwardness. If the dance were set at West High, it would be simpler and less expensive for students to attend. Despite it being less glamorous of a setting, an opportunity is an opportunity after all.

A second all-school dance is just what West High needs for more student interaction. Sure, we have clubs and athletics which serve as a great way to meet new people who share similar passions. But because of this isolated way of socializing, students begin to find themselves surrounded by a particular crowd, whether that be their track teammates or fellow Robotics members. While it is good to find people with similar interests, one huge aspect of high school, and life for that matter, is socializing with different types of people who share a common aspect in life: their high school.

City and Liberty high school each offer three total dances throughout the academic year. One in fall, one in winter and prom in the spring. Why should West High be left behind in this aspect? Excellence is tradition here after all.