The upperclassman dances of 2025 are facing new changes this year. Junior Ring will take place at Jarrettsville Gardens Banquet Hall while Senior Prom will be held on the Baltimore Senior Prom Day Cruise.
Junior Ring takes on a huge change as the group moves from Water’s Edge in Belcamp to the more spacious venue, Jarrettsville Gardens Banquet Hall, due to the sheer size of the class. Along with the plus ones, the number of attendees may be as high as 400 people.
Junior Class Moderator Shannon Olson said, “The biggest factor that led to our decision is the size of the current junior class. At the end of last year, the Class of 2026 had 20 more students than the class we had just hosted, and Water’s Edge is just not big enough to accommodate a class of that size unless we would have eliminated the dance floor all together.”
It was important that the new venue would be within a reasonable proximity to where most students live. The venue change needed to stay within budget and could not sway the ticket price too much.
Ms. Olson said, “We chose Jarrettsville Gardens because it ultimately had everything we needed and were looking for in a new venue.”
While catering was provided in-house at Water’s Edge, an outside caterer has been chosen for Jarrettsville Gardens.
Ms. Olson commented, “Mr. Nocket and I explored many different food options, and we are confident that everyone will be happy with the food choices.”
One concern was the ambiance of the new venue compared to previous years. Addressing this issue, Ms. Olson said, “Water’s Edge is more picturesque, with is being on the water, but with all the decorations and hard work that our class officers and delegates are going to put into it, it will make this an awesome experience for their class. Plus we are planning on adding some fun games and activities in addition to just having the dance floor.”
Similarly, the Senior Prom location has changed for a different reason. Every May, a survey goes out to the rising senior class to vote on the location of the Senior Prom. Possible venues are M&T Bank Stadium, the Baltimore National Aquarium, Ripken Stadium, and a day cruise out of the Maryland Cruise Terminal in Baltimore.
Senior Class Moderator Larry Hensley said, “In prior years, the Senior Prom location vote had favored the aquarium by a landslide. This year it was the opposite. This time, the Baltimore Cruise won by a landslide.”
Once on the boat, students will find that four floors of the cruise are occupied by DJs and dance floors.
Students are only out on the water for about three hours. The boat circles the harbor, allowing time for students to have dinner, dance, and socialize. The cruise will port again around 9:30 pm, allowing for an earlier arrival back to JC than previous years.
Mr. Hensley said, “I believe this change will have a positive impact on the JC community. This is a fresh and exciting new location.”