To help offset expenses for Senior Prom at the Baltimore Aquarium, the senior class will host a Sadie Hawkins dance.

The idea came from class officers Katy Sheward, Steve Harper, and Kristen Little.

Ever since the commencement of the school year, these student leaders have had one goal on their minds – to lower the price of prom tickets.  After putting on a well-reviewed variety show and the first-ever Halloween Dance, the officers are continuing to pursue new and innovative ways to raise money for their class.

Rumors of a Sadie Hawkins dance had been evident early in the school year.  Other schools in the area, such as Fallston High School, have had Sadie Hawkins dances in recent years, inspiring JC’s idea to host their own.  But despite the rumors, the senior leadership had never taken serious action to make this happen.

However at an October 30^th meeting between the senior officers and class moderators, guidance counselor Larry Hensley and library media specialist Anne Baker, the idea of a Sadie Hawkins dance reappeared. They agreed that the time had come to make it happen.

The dance has been scheduled for February 20, 2010. “[The class officers] originally wanted it to be before Christmas, but we didn’t have enough time,” said Baker.

“We wanted another formal dance to break up winter,” said Sheward. “It gives the freshmen and sophomores something to look forward to since they don’t have prom or ring dance.”

The dance will be formal, like Homecoming, except with a twist – traditionally, a Sadie Hawkins means that the girls do the asking.  The name Sadie Hawkins was derived from the comic strip Lil’ Abner, in which the character Sadie Hawkins, who was “the homeliest gal in all the hills” would chase after the eligible bachelors in her town.

Hensley and the team of senior officers have tossed around the idea of making the dance a black and white affair, but nothing has been decided.

“A black tie affair would have been cool, but people were complaining that that might be too limiting,” said Baker. “We might want to make it more flexible.”

The location of the dance is also undecided. If ticket sales are high, it will take place in the gym. If not, the dance will be in the cafeteria, like the Back To School Dance.

Steve Harper says that more details will be announced at a later date, as the logistics of the dance are still under discussion.

Charlotte Hagerman can be reached for comment at [email protected].

Erin Hanratty can be reached for comment at [email protected].