Posted on 10/17/2005 7:21:55 AM PDT by Millee
Brother Kenneth Hoagland had heard all the stories about prom-night debauchery at his Long Island high school: students putting down $10,000 to rent a party house in the Hamptons; pre-prom cocktail parties followed by a trip to the dance in a liquor-loaded limo; fathers chartering a boat for their children's late-night "booze cruise."
Enough was enough, Hoagland said. So the principal of Kellenberg Memorial High School canceled the spring prom in a 2,000- word letter to parents.
"It is not primarily the sex/booze/drugs that surround this event, as problematic as they might be; it is, rather, the flaunting of affluence, assuming exaggerated expenses, a pursuit of vanity for vanity's sake - in a word, financial decadence," Hoagland said, fed up with what he called the "bacchanalian aspects."
"Each year, it gets worse - becomes more exaggerated, more expensive, more emotionally traumatic," he added. "We are withdrawing from the battle and allowing the parents full responsibility. (The school) is willing to sponsor a prom but not an orgy."
The move brought a mixed, albeit passionate, reaction from students and parents at the Roman Catholic school, which is owned by the Society of Mary (Marianists), a religious order of priests and brothers.
"I don't think it's fair, obviously, that they canceled prom," said senior Alyssa Johnson of Westbury. "There are problems with the prom, but I don't think their reasons or the actions they took solved anything."
Hoagland began talking about the future of the prom last spring after 46 Kellenberg seniors made a $10,000 down payment on a $20,000 rental in the Hamptons for a post-prom party. When school officials found out, they forced the students to cancel the deal; the kids got their money back, and the prom went on as planned. But some parents went ahead and rented a Hamptons house anyway, Hoagland said.
Amy Best, an associate professor of sociology and anthropology at George Mason University in Virginia and the author of "Prom Night: Youth, Schools and Popular Culture," said this is the first time she has heard of a school canceling the prom for such reasons.
"A lot of people have lamented the growing consumption that surrounds the prom," she said, noting it is not uncommon for students to pay $1,000 on the dance and surrounding costs: expensive dresses, tuxedo rentals, flowers, limousines, pre- and post-prom parties.
Edward Lawson, the father of a Kellenberg senior, said he and other parents are discussing whether to organize a prom without the sponsorship of the 2,500- student school.
"I don't think they have a right to judge what goes on after the prom," he said. "They put everybody in the category of drinkers and drug addicts."
Some parents picking up their children on a recent afternoon said they support Hoagland.
"The school has excellent values," said Margaret Cameron of Plainview, N.Y. "We send our children here because we support the values and the administration of the school, and I totally back everything they do."
You could have learned the information yourself had you called the school and asked. But, you don't like to deal with facts and reality.
You've made a number of bizarre and false statements. You've received a number of corrections throughout the thread to the false statements you've made.
You started with:
"I think the principle has over reacted."
You thought he over reacted, then you chided him for not doing enough.
"If what I have seen is true the school must be subsidized by the church.The tuitions are ridiculosly low.I saw $7600."
You received a correction concerning the tuition and found the school was not subsidized.
"I would suspect that families that are renting $20,000 houses for kids parties are tipping the church and in effect stealing the subsidized tuition from the church."
Quite an accusation.
>Please don't start the socialism ore Marxist stuff that has nothing to do with this<
#340 - And then this statement where you equate the Catholic Church with socialism and Marxism:
"Uh! That comment makes no since.The Church is already doing that by lowering the price of the education.All I suggested is charge a market rate and help the church members not the heathens getting a "free ride"."
Your post 257,"but they still need to answer for why a school affiliated with the church allows its student body to participate in drinking parties at any point in the year.If you are going to call yourself a Parochial School or a Christian School"
"Allows its student body to participate in drinking parties"...I don't remember seeing the principal stating that.
I've posted some of your more unusual and disparaging remarks. You could have saved yourself some embarrassment had you taken the time to simply do a little research and check your facts.
But, as you've shown, you have no desire for the truth.
Your above posts clearly show your anti-Catholic bias.
Your posts and your thought processes are quite bizarre...
Some soul-searching and prayer on your part is in order...
I agree. How parents could sponsor this is way beyond me. I tried to protect my children, not throw them to the wolves like these folks are. We had all night proms, well chaperoned, in a fraternity house the school provided for us, and it was great. I'm sure some things went on at times, but never like it is today.
>You've made a number of bizarre and false statements. You've received a number of corrections throughout the thread to the false statements you've made.
You started with:
"I think the principle has over reacted." <
Now you are just making things up because your argument is week.Never said >
You received a correction concerning the tuition and found the school was not subsidized.
this.<
Recieved no such correction but I checked Web site the Tuition is actually lower $6100.This is not possible without class size of 100 or subsidized tuition.
>#340 - And then this statement where you equate the Catholic Church with socialism and Marxism:
"Uh! That comment makes no since.The Church is already doing that by lowering the price of the education.All I suggested is charge a market rate and help the church members not the heathens getting a "free ride"." <
If you had bothered to read thread rather than take quotes out of context you would have noted this was a reply to a charge I was promoting Marxism.The poster apoligized in a subsequent post and said it was aimed at others.
>Allows its student body to participate in drinking parties"...I don't remember seeing the principal stating that. <
When Brother Kenneth washed his hands of the problem he gave tacit approval to the activities outside of sschool.Failure to take action by disciplining students who involve themselves in these parties meets any definition of allow.
You have made multiple charges against me that are either out right fabrications as shown above or just a purposefull twisting of my words.Please provide 1 piece of proof that the school disciplines students for off-campus activities or just admit you don't believe a Christian School should expect the students to adhere to a moral code to attend.
The word you are looking for is moral 'relativism', not realitism, and say what you will, I certainly don't want the public schools making any moral judgements about my kid.
>Recieved no such correction <
In reviewing the post I see that you did post this the other day and I missed it.But unless all teachers are volunteers it is not possible to charge this low a tuition without outside help.
I attended two different Catholic schools. I found that much depended on the parents and the philosophy of the teachers. Oddly enough, the first, very traditional appearing girls' school I attended was the more liberal one. You can't go by appearances, that's for sure. The second school I attended was larger than many public schools, but it was run in a very no-nonsense fashion and that showed in behavior.
From my limited experience, I took away two observations: there were two kinds of parents. There were those who sent their kids to the school for a Catholic and/or moral education, and there were those who had ended up with troubled kids but who figured that they could send them off to Catholic school for the nuns to straighten them out. That tactic seldom worked so far as I could see. In that sense I'd agree with you that the parents have a significant effect on the school. I say good for the priest in this story who is actively working to counteract parenting that runs contrary to the principles of the school.
My second observation relates to the teachers. The first school I attended was run by nuns, many of whom were of the "social worker" variety. Maybe it was the time I attended; I think many of those nuns were products of 1960s era liberal Catholicism. They were more interested in playing social worker/psychologist than in teaching or promoting Catholic doctrine. My second school had a priest as principal who did not tolerate disruption. I thought a got a much better Catholic school education at the second school, despite its larger size and much more diverse student body. It seems to me that in terms of discipline, setting aside the faith issue, the biggest advantages to Catholic schools are uniforms and the ability to expel students (if the administration is willing to do so).
"In reviewing the post I see that you did post this the other day and I missed it.But unless all teachers are volunteers it is not possible to charge this low a tuition without outside help."
After reading this and your previous post...it is PAINFULLY apparent that you refuse to believe anything other than what you think...regardless of the facts.
According to Blessed:
"But unless all teachers are volunteers it is not possible to charge this low a tuition without outside help."
The teachers AREN'T VOLUNTEERS.
This is the tuition and there isn't outside help...
Too bad the facts don't "jive" with your "expert" opinions.
Don't contact me again...I have no use for a liar.
"Received no correction:"
You did receive a correction to both charges: Post 186, posted by Milford 10/17/05.
"Actually, not at all. The school is run by the Marianists and funded by tuition. The tuition cost for high school is not $7,600 - it is $6,025/year...I agree, comparatively speaking, this is a low rate."
You just proved my point about your failure to read and comprehend the facts better than I could ever have presented it.
A second Catholic school on Long Island has canceled its senior and junior proms, school officials said yesterday.
Staff at Chaminade High School - an all-boys' school in Mineola run by the Marianist religious order - announced the cancellation Wednesday in school, and letters also were mailed to parents early Tuesday.
"The prom culture has turned from a formal celebration to a showcase featuring flamboyance, extremism and affluence," the letter reads. "In fact, many students seek to leave the celebration early to engage in excessive behaviors, some of which are illegal."
In September, Kellenberg Memorial High School in Uniondale, also run by the Marianist order, pulled the plug on proms for similar reasons.
Chaminade's president, the Rev. James Williams, said yesterday that the modern prom is more about spreading peacock feathers than togetherness and farewells. "The prom is no longer the focus of the evening," Williams said, adding that most students make brief appearances in stretch limos and fancy outfits, then rush off elsewhere.
"It's very different than it was 15, 20 years ago," he added. "The evening is now about who will have the biggest limo, who has the biggest weekend planned. It's beyond reform."
Williams admitted that many students expressed disappointment when the announcement was made. But he said students seemed to have accepted the school's position, and many even agree with its arguments.
Both Chaminade and Kellenberg have encouraged students to develop alternative ideas to celebrate the year's end.
Since Kellenberg officials canceled the prom two months ago, students in Uniondale have proposed ideas ranging from a carnival or fair to various fund-raising events, said the school's principal, Brother Kenneth Hoagland. He said students have met formally twice to discuss plans.
"They've come to a sense that there are a variety of opinions," Hoagland said. "We like to see that they're involved in discussions. They're learning the art of dialogue and compromise."
Originally published on December 2, 2005
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