WILMINGTON AREA SCHOOLS District moves prom from the high school

The board said goodbye to three of its members.
By LAURA MILOSER
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. -- The school district will stick by a decision to move a Wilmington High School tradition out of the school.
High School Principal William Lyon made a decision to move the prom from the high school gymnasium to the New Englander banquet facility in Neshannock Township.
Four parents and one student expressed their concern at Monday night's school board meeting that tradition, safety and cooperation of students working together to decorate the gym would be lost.
Others concerned
A smaller group also expressed similar concerns during the October meeting.
Parent Jenni Stone said that the effort put forward to decorate the gym is an alternative form of learning for students. She added, "Parents of junior and senior students should have received a letter to hear the real facts."
Superintendent Dr. C. Joyce Nicksick told parents that Lyon performed a thorough analysis addressing every aspect such as safety and cost.
Nicksick also said all parents speaking at the meeting would be contacted to meet with the administration to evaluate the decision.
Lyon said after the meeting that he was approached by a group of juniors (this year's seniors) after last year's prom expressing an interest in moving the event out of the school.
He then began to evaluate the pros and cons of moving the prom. Lyon said after polling the high school staff, the vast majority of teachers were in favor of the change.
Reasons to relocate
He said his main reasons to relocate the prom were safety and disruption of instructional time. Lyon said juniors lose a full week of classes before the prom to decorate the gym.
Plans are to have the prom's grand march at the high school and take a police escort caravan of cars to the New Englander.
The cost should not exceed $25 per student and will include dinner. Lyon said in previous years that students would go to dinner before the grand march, often times racing back to the high school. Lyon said this is one of his safety concerns.
He added that it is still being decided whether to have the all-night party at the New Englander or the high school.
District officials also said farewell to three board members. Steve Warner began serving the district in 1998. Mary Buckwalter and Nancy Hutchison began their terms in 1999. All three decided not to run for another term.
Budget
In other business, board secretary Nancy DeWoody commented that the district's budget is getting slim. She said the state Senate is back in session next week and she would like to see a decision made concerning state subsidies to school districts.
DeWoody said that if money is not received from the state, the district may need to borrow money by the first of January.