Courtesy of Nancy Lu

Listening intently to the guide at the Oasis, junior class Student Council officers scout the restaurant for placement of Prom activities. The officers spent hours both on-site and on campus to ensure a seamless and memorable event.

Culminating each school year with a day of spectacle, school spirit, and nostalgic unity, almost a thousand upperclassmen converge together at the Oasis restaurant to celebrate Prom, and the completion of another academic year. A core part of the American high school dream and a welcome break from academics before testing and finals, Prom is considered the largest school-wide social event for upperclassmen. 

Each year, Student Council (StuCo) plans the entirety of Prom, from start to finish. Starting in January of their sophomore year, the Class of 2026 has worked with filling out paperwork, communicating with administrators, and emailing vendors in advance to ensure a seamless planning timeline. 

“I think Prom is a very, very special event,” Junior Class Parliamentarian Aiden Wen said. “At Westwood, we are locked in all the time, and we are always working hard. But Prom is a chance for us to have fun with our friends, classmates, and peers in a setting that is not academic — in a setting that is very special to all of us.”

Prom is the last school-wide social event that seniors attend before they graduate high school. This year’s prom theme, “A Tale as Old as Time,” captures the idea that seniors will remember the night forever, and will indulge in a final spell of making nostalgic high school memories.

“Prom feels more final as it’s probably one of the last times I’ll get to dress up with all of the people I’ve gotten close with throughout high school,” Mahathi Harith ‘25 said. “It feels like a perfect farewell to these [past four] years.”

To ensure that the event goes flawlessly, the Student Council Class of 2026 has been planning the event since January of their sophomore year. During this time, they have met with school administrators, Oasis representatives, and donation organizations.

“Back in sophomore year, we contacted the Oasis to confirm that they could be our venue for Prom, then we contacted administration to pay the down-payment,” Junior Class Treasurer Iris Chen said. “Then this year, we had to contact the photobooths, and confirm catering.”

To ensure that the placement of the photobooths and other activities fit in the allocated area, the junior and sophomore class officers toured the Oasis on Saturday, Jan 18. They also planned a Mojo Coffee spirit night to raise funds for Prom. They visited the Oasis on many occasions to observe the event and plan the logistics of the event.

“The most challenging part is contacting all the vendors and understanding the things that we needed to get done with the administration,” Chen said. “[After last year] I realized that the hallway where the voting booth was was a bit crowded, [and] also that the 360 photo booth could be moved to a better location. This knowledge allowed us to improve the layout of the upcoming Prom.”

Small minute details have always been important to ensure that Prom is a better and more enjoyable experience every year. By curating the planning process to reflect a high-degree of detail and consideration, the StuCo officers hope to allow students the opportunity to  experience the perfect evening to close out their high school journey.

“[During our visits to the Oasis], I got to [visualize] what people enjoyed, what people liked, what people thought made Prom great, and we’re gonna make it even better,” Wen said.

As the class parliamentarian, Wen’s job is to ensure that upperclassmen’s desires are represented, and reflected when he pitches them to school administrators. Then, after the ideas are approved, Wen and the other junior class officers are tasked with bringing the ideas to reality.

“The most challenging part of Prom planning is the massive amounts of communication and coordination we have to do,” Wen said. “The Class of 2026 is working hard with a lot of third-party vendors to make sure that juniors and seniors have the best experience at Prom.”