Coppell High School canceled prom, originally scheduled for April 4 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, for the class of 2020 in an email sent by CHS Principal Laura Springer on Wednesday. 

The cancelation is a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak which also suspended STAAR testing and postponed SAT/ACT testing for Coppell students. 

As of now, there has not been any information on rescheduling prom, therefore refunds will be provided to students according to Student Council President Leo Swaldi. Prom tickets were priced anywhere from $85 to $100 depending on when students bought them. 

For seniors, going to prom is a memorable experience as students celebrate four years of hard work. 

“I bought the dress [and] I even sent it to alterations which is more of an extra cost,” CHS senior Alifiya Shaikh said. “I was practicing to do my makeup properly and everything because I was going to do it on my own. Just like the anticipation behind [prom} and the time I got to spend with my friends before we went off to college was important for me, and the fact that I can’t have it anymore is very disappointing for me.”  

CHS seniors such as Tabi Tudor, who just received her dress from an online order the day prom was canceled, spent around $250 on a dress, a deposit for a limousine and her prom ticket. Tudor hopes that the school will hold prom at the CHS gymnasium at a later time.

“You almost kind of want to be in the gym or one of those things at your school, just so you can have the typical movie, perfect life [experience],” Tudor said. “I feel like that would actually be cool to try doing especially with the given situation.” 

However, both Shaikh and Tudor plan to go out with their friends on another night if there is no rescheduling of prom. 

“I definitely might do something with my friends because we were planning it, Shaikh said. “We were saying that we should do something at someone’s house and dress up and just take pictures because we don’t want that to go to waste.” 

With the cancelation of prom, Springer encouraged students to take self-distancing and self-quarantine seriously. 

“What I really want to say to each one of you is be safe,” Springer wrote in an email sent to students. “This virus is something that we have to get under control, but don’t live your life in fear. Live with common sense and follow the guidelines given to all of us for our safety.” 

View the CISD website and Coppell Student Media for more updates and information about COVID-19.

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