Students at a California High School could face disciplinary action after using an NFL-inspired draft to pick their prom dates.
At Corona del Mar High School in Newport Beach (the location of the cliquey high school drama The OC), there is a longstanding tradition for the boys to draw up a list of girls and then rank them on their desirability as a prospective prom date. It is thought that the boys then buy tickets with one reportedly paying $140 for a particular girl.
The system is used in NFL at the beginning of the season to recruit new players. Teams at the bottom of the league are given the chance to pick elite college football players. It is designed so that there is a level playing field for American Football talent.
The high school students used Twitter to publish the results of the draw and, according to the Orange County Register, a rulebook was also tweeted out saying that ‘sophomores can be drafted’. The twitter account has since been deactivated.
The draft effectively solves the problematic awkward moment when a boy, sweating and nervous, mumbles “Will you go to the prom with me?” to a girl as she frantically roots around in her locker. Although, it has meant in recent years that girls at Corona del Mar High have gone to the prom with boys they barely knew.
The prom draft usually remains a secret but over the weekend the Corona del Mar High School principal Kathy Scott heard the rumour. She sent an email to parents: “I am sure that the intention of this ‘draft’ is not to be harmful, but it may be,” Scott wrote. “It is not OK for any student to be objectified or judged in any way.”
One student told the Orange County Register, “It is all just a fun way to decide who you will be going to prom with”. Another tweeted saying “How many of you have ever felt personally victimised by the prom draft? Oh wait… #nobody”.
However, the feminist society at neighbouring school Estancia High School have criticised the draft for objectifying young women. The president Emily Flores at Estancia told Orange County Register, “These boys must be very confused about the time we live in if they think that being asked to prom is such a high honour”.
Simply asking someone to be your date to prom has drastically changed in recent years. High school students have organized extravagant flashmobs and romantic seranades to secure their dates.
Would you have used the draft system to save you from a socially awkward situation or should the students be ashamed for objectifying the girls?