Parents, Schools Try to Attract Students to Alcohol-Free After-Prom Events

Schools, parents and civic organizations around the country are trying to attract high school students to alcohol-free supervised events after their prom, Reuters reports. Some are offering expensive door prizes including iPads and even cars.

One high school outside Dallas gave $500 college scholarships to two students who went to an alcohol-free after-party. Some of the prizes offered at these parties are provided by local businesses, while others are bought with money raised by parents.

In Derby, Kansas, a committee booked an amusement park for the after-prom party. Bus drivers were hired to bring the students to and from the park.

Event organizers say it can be difficult to impress students already spending so much on the prom. The average teen spends more than $1,000 on prom-related expenses, including clothing, jewelry, hair styling, manicures, tickets to the event, dinner and a limousine.

Kathy Sullivan, Director of the Roanoke Area Youth Substance Abuse Coalition in Roanoke, Virginia, which holds a “grand finale party,” said, “Research shows that if they stay to the end of the after-prom party, they are more likely to be alcohol- and drug-free.” This year two students attending their event will win iPads, and one will win a 2013 Nissan Juke.

Students attending an after-prom event in Johnson City, New York will have a chance to win laptops, televisions and microwaves. Each student attending receives a suitcase containing $100 worth of merchandise they can use in college.