On April 12, around 450 attendees enjoyed a wonderful junior prom at The Westin Hotels & Resorts. From taking photos at the photo booth to crowning “Gatsby,” students danced and dined their way through the night.

The theme, “The Great Gatsby,” took much effort to select and execute by the Class of 2025’s Student Government Association (SGA).

“We knew that we wanted to do a fun theme to get people hyped and to base our publicity around it,” said Jessica Lazaroiu (‘25), the Class of 2025 class president. “After having around twenty ideas, we began narrowing down our list to 10, then to five and finally to three: Day & Night, Down the Shore and Great Gatsby.”

After the selection of the top three themes, a Google Form was created for the Junior class to vote on their favorite theme.

“We really wanted the class to be a part of the process because it’s their prom, too,” said Lazaroiu.

Junior prom boasted meticulous decorations from a golden balloon arch to detailed centerpieces. The Westin proved to be a wonderful venue for the matter.

“Everything [was] organized … the time and consistent communication … to execute it the way we wanted it,” said Lazaroiu.

There were dinner choices of carved prime rib au jus, penne alla vodka, house garden salad, chef’s vegetables and more. Drinks included various lemonades, Shirley temples and frozen cocktails.

The night even featured a “crowning” for Gatsby, Duke and Dutchess, similar to a prom court.

“We really wanted to add a ‘wow-factor’ to the night and have something super fun and memorable.” said Lazaroiu, “With some reviewing, we came up with three roles to create more inclusivity in the court.”

Through a Google Form, the Class of 2025 could vote on the finalists for each role. The winners would be chosen through a Quick Response (QR) code present at The Westin.

“We think everyone had a lot of fun seeing their friends and classmates at the front, and we especially hoped that the winners [would] cherish their crowns,” said Lazaroiu.

The Class of 2025 officers now have their sights on senior prom, which will be held at the Crystal Tea Ballroom in Philadelphia. They plan to initiate a class “pre-prom picture” shooting.

“We had a great turnout, and everyone seemed to have so much fun throughout the night. The dance floor was super hype, everyone said the food was great, and lots of people enjoyed the mirror and 360 [degree] photo booths,” said Lazaroiu.

“Junior prom was off the [charts], and Gatsby would definitely approve,” said Sydney Herring (‘25), one of the Class of 2025 vice presidents.