Prom nightmares? If so, these chaperones aren't telling

Spending an evening making sure hormonal teens in formal gear behave themselves might not sound like fun, but those who've done it for years at area schools say it is, really.

They maintain that while prom settings have become more elaborate and teens are springing for pricier accoutrements, the rite-of-passage ritual generally provides a rewarding evening for both students and staff.

That doesn't mean they don't take precautions.

Dirk Gurley, principal at Loris High School, has worked the proms for about 25 years. He said Loris hires security to patrol the parking lots and inside the event "to make sure it's safe."

"I've been very fortunate with the ones I've been involved in," he said. "If there's any drinking, you'll be dealt with, but I've never had a problem."

Gurley said the school holds workshops with the kids, including one on drinking and driving, and makes students aware that security will be on hand.

Paul K. Browning, principal at Socastee High School, has been a principal for about 28 years at four different schools, and said things have gone smoothly overall in those years. No guests over 21 are allowed unless cleared by the administration, and students are held responsible for the behavior of their guests, he said.

"There was a time - and this was years ago - when we'd have some kids who would drink and come to the prom," Browning said, "but there's been only a couple issues in the time I've been here."

What is needed on occasion is a bit of monitoring on the dance floor, where the bump and grind of today's dances can sometimes become a bit too enthusiastic, but as Browning said, "We just walk up and tap them on the shoulder."

"We're going to keep it nice," Gurley said. "You'll have close dancing, and you break it up. Kids are kids; they're going to try that, but I guess we did that when we were in school, too."

"For our school, it's an exciting time," said Wanda Randall, a guidance counselor at North Myrtle Beach High School, who said she's been a prom chaperone for about 13 years. "It's usually pretty smooth. I've never been to a prom where we've had any problems."

Browning and Gurley say that because students are dressed for a formal event, it tends to affect the way they comport themselves on that special night.

"When people dress up, they act like they're dressed up," Browning said. "It's a rite of passage in terms of a kid moving to adult status. It's really their first time of dressing up and going out."

The occasion also isn't lost on the staff, and schools don't usually have problems attracting chaperones for the event. While Browning said that Socastee requires its teachers to make an appearance, Randall says most of the teachers and some staff at North Myrtle attend. Gurley said it's never a problem to recruit chaperones at Loris High.

At Socastee, Browning said chaperones sign up for shifts. Those with young children may choose to come early, while others take the later shifts, with the last shift including cleanup. There is a greeting committee, composed of the school's three administrators and Browning, which stays the entire time.

"One of us is always at the door," Browning said.

Gurley said he remembers when proms used to be held in a gym or cafeteria, but now they're held at more elaborate sites, such as hotel ballrooms, with catered food and students who've spent more to get ready for their close ups.

"We used to drop parachutes in gyms, things like that," Browning said. "With proms today being done in hotel venues, the cleanup is not what it used to be. It's not too bad anymore."

That leaves more time for chaperones to enjoy the party. Most tend to dress up, some bring spouses and significant others, and occasionally, they'll even take the dance floor.

Randall said she'll go in a party dress and has, on occasion, taken her husband, but usually goes with other colleagues so they can "watch, mingle and take pictures."

"It's a great time to see them all dolled up and having fun out of the regular school atmosphere," Randall said, "and the students look for you to be there. They're excited to be in that different atmosphere."

"The staff will dance sometimes," Gurley said. It lets the students see the teachers are "human, that they actually have a wife or a husband, or a boyfriend or girlfriend."

And it's that type of experience that chaperones enjoy year after year.

"It's a real highlight for us. You want to be there," Browning said. "The kids look great that night, and it's fun to watch them dressed up and doing grown-up stuff."

"The kids are gorgeous. They've transformed," Randall said. "I would highly encourage anyone who hasn't been a chaperone to get out there and do it."