Catholic High School Student Barred from Prom for Being Dateless

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A Catholic high school in Pennsylvania has a rule in place about its prom; if you do not have a date for the dance then you are not permitted to attend. Isn’t teenage love difficult enough these days? Now we are banning teens from attending their own proms if they do not have dates for the evening. Amanda Dougherty, 17, was preparing for her prom until her date backed out at the last second. Dougherty had the dress, the shoes, the jewelry and was ready to have a good time with all of her friends. After the initial shock of being left without a date for the prom Dougherty found out that she could not even attend because she did not have a date. The rule was put in place by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Dougherty attends Archbishop John Carroll High School.

“For them to say we’re not good enough to go without a guy next to us, that’s kind of sickening,” Dougherty said.

  

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Dougherty already purchased a ticket for the prom, which cost $95, and spent close to $1,000 on her dress and accessories.

The office of Catholic Education released the following statement in response to Dougherty’s complaints about the rule:

The prom is an exciting event for students in all of our Archdiocesan high schools. We do have policies in place to regulate both the junior and senior prom. Unfortunately, not all students are able to attend. We can’t address specific issues with specific students but there are various reasons that a student would not be able to attend. Not having a date is one example. Our high schools offer numerous dances and events throughout the year where dates are not required, but we view the prom as a special social event where a date is required to attend.

Even though the rule is in place from the Archdiocese, Dougherty is planning to fight that rule and exercise her right to attend the prom, which she has been looking forward to since freshman year.