Seniors encouraged to sign up for graduation night party

Zoe Bodovinitz, Staff Reporter
Originally published February 13, 2018

After some trouble finding a parent willing to head the event, Student Parent Responsible Evening Event or SPREE, is finally starting to be planned. The parent run event starts right after the senior class graduates and goes until the next morning. Every detail is kept a secret from the students until they are living the moment. Secretary Vivian Belcher has a lot of experience with SPREE as she was in charge of it four times.

“It’s a way to keep you guys safe and that’s why where we go is a secret. That’s why 95 percent of the parents don’t even know where they were going. Past classes have known where they are going and items were hidden,” Belcher said.

Studies have shown that more seniors die in car related accidents on the night of graduation than any other day of the year. SPREE offers a safe and fun way to spend graduation night with friends and eliminates that risk.

“The whole point is to keep you sober, keep you clean, and to keep you safe,” Belcher said.

The school has worked with the company Gradnights for year to help plan SPREE. Gradnights offers a list of over 50 locations and 75 activities available for the senior class to visit and do. Some of the options include hypnotists, dessert bars, caricature artists and more, but the students even know what’s been chosen for them until they get to their locations.

“Nobody except the three core people heading the event know anything prior to the night of. Then on the night of, all of the chaperones get to know. Then you guys don’t even know until we’re pulling into the parking lot and you recognize where you are or you still don’t know until you get inside and see what’s there,” Belcher said.

Alumnus of the class of 2017 Helen Dahl went on her SPREE and found it to be a good wrap-up to her high school experience.

“I really enjoyed SPREE, it was a fun way to spend the night with your friends who you might not see for a while doing all these surprise activities,” Dahl said. “Right after you graduate, you’re filled with this adrenaline rush because you know that you never have to go back to high school. You’ve reached this milestone in your life and for me, it was really fun to spend the night after I had accomplished this achievement with the people who had mattered most to me while I was getting to that point.”

The prices for SPREE vary depending on where the party goes and how many activities are chosen. SPREE scholarships are available for students that want to go but my not be able to pay as long as they talk to their counselor about it.

“SPREE usually starts in the $100-140 range and can go as high as $200 for late sign-ups,” Belcher said.

SPREE tickets go on sale Feb. 12 for $125. The prices will rise as SPREE gets closer. All information about SPREE will be posted outside the Alumni Room across from the main office. Any SPREE related questions can be answered in the main office.

“Once you sign up initially and make your payment, about eight weeks down the road from then there will be bus sign-ups,” Belcher said. “That’s when you can personalize it a little bit because you can sign up for your best friends and make sure they’re on the same bus as you. It’s one way to encourage your friends to make sure they’re signing up early.”

All seniors are encouraged to go on SPREE and have one last high school hoorah.

“I would recommend SPREE to seniors,” Dahl said. “After the graduation ceremony, there wasn’t a chance to see everyone and say goodbyes or see-you-laters or whatnots. Going to SPREE allowed me to have that closure with my friends and peers who I might not see again before we all went our own ways.”