KELSEY LUKE

The date of Mountain Vista’s prom this year causes controversy as it is April 20th, the anniversary of the Columbine shooting.

The main reason for having prom on this day is simply a timing issue.

“I think it’s hard to schedule that many proms in that few proms that few weekends,” Bret Grammerstorf, History teacher at Vista, said, “I don’t think anyone did it on purpose. It’s unfortunate, but I don’t think it was intentional.”

Although unintentional, some argue the logic behind having the day of from school previous years, but being able to have a school function that day.

“I know it wasn’t on purpose, but I feel like it is almost disrespectful that they had it on this day, because we are supposed to take this day to remember the tragedy,” Quentin Norcutt, 11, said.

Along with the factor of disrespect, come concerns of security. The reason for having the day off from school every April 20th is to recognize the event and to make sure no one attempts to recreate it.

“I guess it’s okay to have prom but not school because when you have school, then someone could want to reenact what happened at Columbine. I guess with prom they don’t really see the risk of that happening,” Danielle Cushing, senior Student Counsel member, said.

Emotional aspects also play into the dispute of the date of prom. “It’s kind of hard because Columbine was a big event and that day is a day to remember everyone who was affected harshly by it, so it’s kind of hard to do that and focus on prom at the same time,” Mariah Taylor, 12, said.

Some argue that the predicament could be taken positively. “It could be taken as a good thing,” Megan Rodriguez, 12, said, “Columbine was a tragic event, but we can all come together as a school and have fun together for that day.”