The 2021 Winter Formal is scheduled for Dec. 4 and will be held at the Carlsbad Flower Fields. Many students are excited to go to the event, especially freshmen since it’s their first high school dance. But what may stop them from going?

Ticket prices. Prices started at $55, $50 with an ASB sticker during Dec. 1-7, and rise by $5 dollars each week. Now that we have entered the last week of ticket sales, each ticket costs $70.

Being able to go to dances is a vital part of mental health. A study conducted by the University of Hertfordshire by psychology professor Peter Lovatt reveals non-physical benefits of dancing.

“Happiness is experienced while dancing and is measurable even after dancing,” Lovatt said. “It increases levels in happiness as long as a week after the dance.”

Since mental health is of major importance in high school, another importance is being able to afford to go.

The dance will make great high school memories but many students can’t go because they can’t afford it. 

For many students that don’t have jobs or have allowances, it can be difficult to be able to go to the dance. Not every student is capable of having a part-time job because it can interfere with studying or important extracurricular activities. The majority of students are not employed: only 30% of students in a high school are employed, meaning 70% aren’t. 

Household money circumstances also play a huge role in if a student can attend school events or not. Freshman Lola Thoulouis touches on how affordability is not accessible to everyone for this event. 

“A lot of families aren’t able to afford tickets that cost that much, not to mention families with multiple children that want to go,” Thoulouis said.  “Dances like this already cost a lot of money without having to pay for expensive tickets because people want to buy a formal outfit.” 

Students may reach out to Tapia or another trusted staff member if they need financial assistance, but students may not be comfortable disclosing their economic situation which means they will still be unable to attend. 

Since many students aren’t financially able to go, the school should lower prices to a more acceptable price. ASB Director Valerie Tapia discussed their reasoning of ticket pricing for the formal, explaining why this formal costs how much it does.

“Generally, our on-campus dances are less expensive than our off-campus dances as we do not have to pay a venue fee,” Tapia said. “Winter formal is an off-campus dance.” 

Needing to pay the venue fee, ASB has decided to increase prices each week. 

“We did not want to increase our ticket prices from the start and are instead increasing them on the back end in the last week,” Tapia said.

Having a ticket goal needed to be filled makes it reasonable as to why ASB is raising the price each week. This allows ASB to financially afford events this big.

Knowing that off-campus venues are more expensive to hold, specifically $12,000 for this event, on-campus events are better and more affordable.

The dance could instead be hosted in the gym or the field. This could decrease the price of tickets for the venue and will aid the financial situation amongst students by allowing more students to enjoy the event. 

It will not only likely make more ticket sales, but students will want to attend the next dances as well. Having more ticket sales may also allow ASB to earn more money, therefore potentially being able to afford to throw more events.