Prom has a profound impact A billboard promoting a safe prom is located on Riverside Drive in Allouez (photo by H. Marc Larson). The community gears up for students' safety By Anna Krejci News-Chronicle Preparing for prom has gone beyond shopping for dresses and being fitted for tuxedos. The annual high school dances are an occasion for which the entire community prepares - not just the students. The Green Bay Area Drug Alliance, area hotels and formal wear businesses are launching this year's campaign to keep students safe on prom night. Ashwaubenon High School will hold its prom on Saturday, the first to do so this year among 14 local high schools. Last year the campaign introduced billboard postings and will sponsor them again. The billboard sign reads the same as last year's message, "A Drug and Alcohol Free Prom ... A memory you can live with." To the right of the message it shows a young man in a tuxedo and a young woman in a gown dancing. Du Bois Formal Wear, Inc. is paying for the billboard printing. Bill Schroeder, spokesman for Orde Advertising, Inc., the business donating labor for the billboards, said the first sign is up on U.S. 41 at the Glory Road exit, just south of Oneida Street in Ashwaubenon. Other signs are scheduled to be displayed by April 1 on Mason Street, east of Lime Kiln Road; at the intersection of Broadway and Mather Streets and on Mason Street east of Packerland Drive. "We're trying to hit the premier prom season," Schroeder said. While the businesses and the alliance are promoting safe proms in several ways, one Ashwaubenon High School student said he does not believe the advertisement will change students' behaviors. "It's kind of a waste of money because its not going to affect me," said Nick Hammer, 11th-grader, although he said other efforts were worthwhile. "The idea of having a school-related post prom party is a good idea," Hammer said. Ashwaubenon High School is having a post-junior prom party at a bowling alley with a DJ, food, games and prizes. Senior Liz Gauthier attended the post-prom party last year and said the free food was nice and learning to play blackjack and other gambling games was fun. She also said drinking is still a strong post-prom tradition. "There's going to be a lot of parties," she said. "They try post-prom, but everyone leaves early to go drinking," said senior Trisha Schounard. Norene Giese, spokeswoman for the Greater Green Bay Area Drug Alliance, has worked on the safe prom campaign for about five years. She said the alliance has gathered information that local schools can mail to 11th-graders' parents. Green Bay Area public schools are sending out 1,800 information packets including a letter from the district attorney and Superintendent Daniel Nerad. The correspondence informs parents that they can be held liable for the safety of minors who were drinking at a party that they supervised or facilitated. The letter encourages parents to advocate their children attend post-prom parties organized by parent networks, businesses and the alliance. Having high parental involvement in the post-prom party bothers Ashwaubenon junior Graham Greening. "It kind of takes away from us," he said, adding that the students who do not drink feel punished by a high level of supervision. Junior Rachel Wawrzyn said during the prom, a chaperone must escort a student outside if he or she needs to get something from their car. "I think that's overdoing it a little bit," she said. Students said the post-prom party has been embraced by the student body as tradition. Wawrzyn said that making the post-prom party an overnight event would reduce drinking among students. Thirty-three Greater Green Bay Area Lodging Association members have pledged not to rent rooms to minors or to adults who allow minors to hold an unsupervised party involving drugs or alcohol. Brown County District Attorney John Zakowski has issued a letter to area hotels and motels reminding them although they are permitted to rent rooms to minors, they do not have to. Some florists and formal wear businesses will distribute safe prom cards and tags to their prom-going customers and the Brown County Sheriff's Department is prepared to send additional officers in the form of traffic teams to the high schools on prom night. Although the department could always benefit from more patrol officers, department spokesman Capt.John Gossage said the schools are well-looked-after with direct enforcement officers, liaison officers and traffic officers. "We have a tremendous amount of resources," Gossage said. Last year, the sheriff's department responded to situations at several hotels where underage drinking was taking place and issued underage drinking citations. The fine for underage drinking for the first offense is $429. Supplying minors with alcohol can result in a $300 fine for the first offense and increase to $1,000 beginning with the fourth offense. Green Bay East and West High Schools have their proms on April 17. Proms for Denmark, Preble and Southwest High Schools take place April 24. Wrightstown High School will be the last in the area to hold its prom on May 8.