The good news for students is, Pierce County schools will be holding proms this year. But unfortunately, excited parents will not be able to attend most indoor grand marches for that time-honored tradition of photos/video. However, don’t despair, because as with most things during this pandemic, a creative alternative is coming.

All school districts will require students to remain masked throughout the evening. Here’s a round-up of what area districts are doing for prom this year.

Ellsworth

Ellsworth High School will hold prom at EHS on April 24, with a catered meal, grand march and dance. Only juniors and seniors are allowed to attend, and no outside prom guests will be permitted.

“We are planning on having a grand entrance area at the front of the high school with the trestle and a red carpet for the students to be able to make a grand entrance and for parents to take pictures if they would like,” EHS Principal Mark Stoesz said.

Students will arrive by 5:30 p.m. for pictures in the gym, followed by the grand march. While no visitors are allowed in the school for grand

See PROM, Page 12 march, it will be livestreamed (along with the red-carpet entrance). Following grand march, the senior and junior classes’ prom courts will be crowned.

Formal photography will be hosted at the school. The dance will include break out rooms for other activities, and should wind down around 10:30 p.m.

Elmwood / Plum City

Elmwood and Plum City school districts will partner, as they have in the past, to provide students with a prom experience this year, set for May 1 at the Metropolis in Eau Claire.

“The Metropolis was actually set to host us last year, so a lot of the logistical planning fell into place rather easily,” said Elmwood Middle/High School Principal Tom Sauve.

The Dunn-St. Croix Conference has worked closely together to align what prom will look like for conference schools, Sauve added. They were careful to schedule prom early enough to clear any potential issue for graduation, in case any close contacts or positive cases lead to quarantining.

Two grand marches will be held: Plum City’s will be at 4:30 p.m., while Elmwood’s will be at 5:30 p.m. in the EHS gymnasium. Sauve said at Elmwood, each prom attendee will be allowed four people to come to grand march; it will also be livestreamed through the gym camera.

“The proms are obviously going to look a little different based on the district, but throughout this COVID-19 era, we have all worked together well to share ideas to deliver the best experiences for our students as possible.”

Prescott

Prescott High School’s junior/senior prom will be held 7 p.m. to midnight Saturday, April 24 at the Ridgetop banquet facility (W10516 U.S. Highway 10, Prescott).

The grand march will be livestreamed starting at 7 p.m. since parents are not allowed to attend. The livestream will be posted on YouTube; the link can be found under PSD Activities and Athletics on the school district website. Parents will be notified ahead of time where to access the livestream and an approximate time for each couple’s appearance. A photographer will be hired and a photobooth will be onsite, according to the district website.

As for the coronation, the Class of 2020 voted for their court last year. These students will be recognized and coronated at the 2021 prom, followed by the junior class coronation, which will be livestreamed as well.

“Students are very excited about Prom this year,” said PHS Library Media Specialist Joan Simon._“I am happy that we are going to be able to hold this fun spring tradition.”

A sit-down dinner is planned. Students are not being allowed to bring guests from other schools.

“Due to COVID restrictions and the inability to contact trace students from other schools, we cannot allow students from other districts to join us at Prom 2021,” the website states.

Students will be expected to wear masks the entire evening, except when eating dinner. If a student is identified to have had COVID while attending prom, all students attending may be deemed close contacts and required to quarantine.

River Falls

According to River Falls High School Principal Kit Luedtke, prom will be held Saturday, May 15 at RFHS. The virtual grand march will be held at 7 p.m. in the auditorium and livestreamed to family and community members via the school district YouTube channel.

Juniors and seniors will stay on campus for the dance.

“In addition to our dance, we will use our outdoor patio space, tents, along with other surprises for those in attendance,” Luedtke said. _

Spring Valley

Spring Valley’s junior/senior prom will be held Saturday, April 24 at the middle/high school. All prom events will take place at the school, including:

•Grand march at 5:30 p.m., which will be livestreamed for family and community viewing.

• 6 p.m. dinner (catered by Hurtgen Catering)

•7 p.m. dancing in the commons area

•10 p.m. prom ends and post-prom begins, ending at 1 a.m.

No outside spectators will be allowed in the building for grand march. However, the event will be livestreamed and the school publications department will take photos during grand march and throughout the evening. Those will be available for downloading.

Post-prom activities will include karaoke, an obstacle course, bounce house, food, prizes and more.

The district is allowing outside guests, but all participants must fill out a COVID prom waiver form, which states that prom attendance is voluntary and any positive COVID case will result in a mandated quarantine for all students, per county guidance.