In a message sent to seniors and their families May 1, Dean of Students Ana Campos announced that this year’s prom has been officially canceled.

The prom was set to take place June 6 at the Zhou B Arts Center in the Bridgeport neighborhood.. Ms. Campos explained that, in an open Zoom call held by the prom committee, attendees came to the decision that if a prom could not be held later in the summer, they will not try to reschedule. 

“The University has simply chosen to cancel all summer events and programs through the summer and put restrictions on large group gatherings, a decision that affects us at Lab,” committee chair Emily Zhang said. “Because safety is the number one priority, some events must ironically become casualties.”

Emily emphasized that the prom committee and Ms. Campos had worked very hard to push for an in-person prom later in the summer but ultimately, it was not safe to do so.

“If the possibility that we could hold a prom later existed, we would not have decided against holding one,” Emily said. 

The May 1 letter said that instead of a prom, the Class of 2020 would like to have a reunion brunch in June 2021. 

“Brunch is one idea, and we would love to hear others,” Emily said. 

Ms. Campos’s letter also mentioned the idea of having a virtual dinner by Zoom where attendees would dress in prom attire on the night that prom was originally supposed to take place. 

The letter said, “This would be a fun way to let the students have dinner together over Zoom, dress up in their prom clothes if they wish, and meet up in break-out rooms as if they were sitting at their dinner tables at the dance.”