The lucky winners of Lincoln East’s prom royalty this year are Gavin Foust, Anna Barrett, Avery Nordhues, and Parker Whitmore. Prom took place on April 11th at the Scottish Rite Ballroom in downtown Lincoln. Loud music, hot bodies, and smiling faces packed the dance until eleven that night. Though it would seem like the night was over, it’d be far from the truth. Crowds of kids counting their tickets surrounded the prize tables at post prom where they’d cash them in for blankets, color changing lights, and other trinkets until two-thirty in the morning. TV’s, watches, and blenders were given away to the lucky raffle winners.
Prom is one of the two nights East gives students an opportunity to dress up and show off, with the other being homecoming. Prom, however, is strictly for upperclassmen (with the exception of some underclassmen who tag alongside). To some, it’s hyped up to be the best night of your high school life. To others, it’s just another dance. Either way, students can spend up to hundreds of dollars on dresses, suits, shoes/heels, hair, jewelry, makeup, and dinner. It’s a big event for many, especially since there’s such an emphasis on formal wear.
Many find taking photos and getting ready as fun, if not more fun, than the actual dance.
“The most fun part of my day was getting ready,” Avery Nordhues, a junior at East and this year’s prom princess, said. “All of my friends came to my house, like our whole group. There were a ton of girls and our moms came to help us.”
The Lincoln Capital and Lincoln country clubs are common areas where people take photos. Some op for their front door or a green scenic background to put on their prom Instagram post as well.
“I also loved pictures,” Nordhues said. “We went to the Sheldon [Art Museum] which was really busy, but it was really fun.”
Downtown Lincoln was bustling with students heading to their dinner reservations, especially in the Haymarket.
“Our dinner reservation went super long, so we didn’t get very much time at the dance,” Nordhues added. “ I was sad about [that] because I would have loved to stay longer. The dance was super fun.”
Being nominated for prom royalty and actually winning it is such an exciting and rare experience. Shock was racing through Nordhues’ mind when her name was called for court.
“I was like ‘oh my god, this is awesome,’” Nordhues said. “Not much [emotion] was going through my head, [mostly] just shock.”
Nordhues mentioned that all of her friends were cheering and celebrating for her, and she didn’t know where to go.
“I found this picture of me with my mouth wide open, and I was genuinely so surprised.” Nordhues said.
Casey Fries, East’s principal, beckoned her over to the stage to award her a crown.
Another student who won prom king is Gavin Foust, a senior at East, and he reported feeling similar emotions.
“I was super excited,” Foust said. “Samantha Aguilar and I were campaigning together, so we were hoping that it was going to be both of us, but I was super proud of Anna when she was called.”
Foust felt as shocked as Nordhues.
“I didn’t even get time to process the fact that my name was just called,” Foust said. “It was super duper exciting, just that excitement that I was even up there. I didn’t go in with much expectations because I’ve already been on court before.”
Teachers Anne Daly and Madelyn. Kreifels at Lincoln East are to thank for the arrangements and opportunities prom offered this year. They co-sponsor the event and go about the majority of its planning. While post prom is planned by admins and a parent group, Daly and Kreifels still had some help from students at East.
“We’ve met with different student groups this year,” Daly said. “Ms. Kreifels is running and sponsoring StuCo.”
“The [student groups] helped us with the tickets, the design of the posters, and came up with the idea for the theme,” Kreifels said. “Some of those things [are] where we want student input and ideas.”
“This year was really successful with getting kids involved [in planning post prom],” Daly said.
It sounds like a lot to plan, and that’s because it is.
“We’re already planning for next year,” Kreifels said.
“We have dates for 2027 and we have the venue for 2028,” Daly added. “Easily a year in advance.”
It’s been a scramble securing the Scottish Rite Ballroom as East’s venue because it’s so desirable. In years prior, East’s prom had been at the Playmore Ballroom, but the sponsors switched because they wanted to try something new. Things to consider have been the capacity, the location, and the looks; to their success, the Scottish Rite Ballroom checked all the boxes.
Things calm down a bit in price and availability for post prom since gyms at East are always available. This year’s post prom theme was all about cowboys and the wild west. Cowboy hats and straw decorations were laid on the lunch tables and there were even line dancing lessons. For prizes, students could spend from two to 25 tickets to get sunglasses, octobuddies, snacks, speakers, earbuds, color changing lights, blankets, and stuffed animals.
Free Chick-fil-A and Runza was served at the entrance, and after that students were encouraged to start playing games. There were activities for any vibe, from active and rowdy to chill and relaxed. Some of the ways to earn tickets were to race through a bounce house, play spike ball, throw a football into a goal, gamble for tickets and play poker, compete with your friends at bull racing, play ping pong, and learn how to line dance.
East’s 2026 prom was a successful one full of memories and fun times. Whether you think it’s overhyped or not hyped enough, mark your calendars for April third, 2027.
“I think it’s a special night,” Daly said. “It’s not even just prom. It’s the getting ready, it’s the outfit you choose, and it’s the pictures. If you do dinner, it’s your friends. Actual prom is this much [gestures to a small amount] of a really cool experience.”
