The Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) Semi-Formal which was initially planned to take place on Friday, Jan. 24, 2025, has been postponed to Friday, April 11, from 7-10 p.m. in the WA cafeteria.
The date was moved due to a lack of feedback from students and low ticket sales, in addition to the fact it was the day after midterms which made it harder to promote the dance. During the next advisory meeting on Thursday Feb. 13, there will be a survey sent out to get feedback from students on the semi-formal, and whether or not the clubs should go forward with the dance.
The goal for the new date is to have at least 200 tickets sold which is also why the dance was opened up to all grades. The proceeds for the dance would go to the California wildfire victims. The Herren club and STUCO members were also helping out SADD by selling tickets during school lunches and planning the dance. According to SADD club adviser Lauren Rybicki, the clubs are wondering whether students would like to continue school dances or whether they should focus their time and effort on other activities students would be more interested in.
“If we do have to cancel, then our club will take a break from planning dances in the future,” Rybicki said. “It takes a tremendous amount of time to plan and put on a event like this and if students aren’t interested in dances then we will put our energy into planning something else.”
The dance was opened up to all grades in hopes of obtaining more money for the California wildfire victims. Due to the change in date, however, and the uncertainty about the availability of students, the club is planning on canceling the dance and fundraiser if the interest and ticket sales are still low. SADD plans on reimbursing the students who bought tickets for the original date.
“When I heard the dance was being moved, I was disappointed, but I cannot say I was completely surprised due to the amount of people who I have talked to that did not plan on attending,” freshman Addison Hale said. “I was still upset though, because due to the change, I am not 100% sure [if] I can still go.”
The winter dance was originally planned to have a winter wonderland theme but with the changed date and season the clubs are still deciding on the new theme, but the location will stay the same. The SADD Semi-Formal used to be a tradition at Westford Academy that dates back over 25 years. The clubs responsible for the dance are hoping to bring back said tradition in order to try and reignite the school’s dance culture.
“It used to be one of the biggest dances at Westford Academy; it had its own section in the yearbook,” Rybicki said. “Seniors used it as an opportunity to wear their cotillion dress a second time. Tickets used to sell out every year. It is a tradition that we are hoping to bring back.”
