Budget Breakdown

2024

When preparing the budget for 2024 we knew exactly what needed to be included: venue, catering, photobooth, staffing, etc.  Our venue for this year was already selected and we received the ending budget from last year and came to the realization that prom tickets are so high because a large budget is need to cover all of the costs. 

For ticket prices we took several things into consideration, ticket sales from 2022 and 2023, increased student enrollment and what we considered to be a reasonable price for a ticket (before we knew all that we know now).  We decided on three amounts based on when tickets were purchased.  The closer to the date the more expensive the ticket.  Also by offering multiple prices at different pay by dates this allowed students/parent to plan ahead put their tickets into their personal budgets. We were excited to offered an early bird price at the beginning of the school year and actually saw a lot of students purchase in the beginning. 

After selecting ticket prices we came up with a projected budget based off of the projected number of tickets to be sold, multiplied by the second payment amount, (which we considered would be the average price a student would pay for the ticket), minus the proposal from the Freight Depot.  This became our working budget total not to be exceeded.

One thing that goes back and forth each year is what are we going to "give out" at prom. In the past, prom shirts were given out, cups, "swag bags" and we just aren't as materialistic. We were able to save money by not having shirts and using the money on glowsticks and disco balls. This even gave us a little extra to spend on a 360 photo booth! (Who knew that photo booths were so expensive!) 

2023

When preparing the budget for 2023 we knew the basic items that needed to be included, venue, catering, photobooth, staffing, etc.  Since this would be the first year we need to find a location we reached out to several venues to request quotes.  We received quotes in price ranging from $10,000 to $20,000 for location only.  We came to realize quickly that it takes a big budget to host a big night and this is why the cost of prom tickets are so high!  

We selected the Biltmore Ballrooms based off of the proposal we received, the discount for using the recommended cater, beverages were included as well as an on-site manager during the event.  

For ticket prices we took several things into consideration, ticket sales from 2022, increased student enrollment and what we considered to be a reasonable price for a ticket (before we knew all that we know now).  We decided on three amounts based on when tickets were purchased.  The closer to the date the more expensive the ticket.  Also by offering multiple prices at different pay by dates this allowed students/parent to plan ahead put their tickets into their personal budgets.

After selecting ticket prices we came up with a projected budget based off of the projected number of tickets to be sold, multiplied by the second payment amount, (which we considered would be the average price a student would pay for the ticket), minus the proposal from the Biltmore.  This became our working budget total not to be exceeded.

2022

Prior to 2019 most event venues required high schools to sign two year contracts for prom.  These contracts stated that the high school would hold their prom at the specific venue every other year.  This style of contracts came to an abrupt end with the global pandemic of Covid 19.

In the pre-planning stages for the 2022 prom we had several things that needed to be considered.  First, the venue was already selected since 2022 would the first official prom that was held "post-pandemic" with no restrictions.  LGHS and GA Tech Hotel and Convention Center were still under contract from 2019, this was to be the location of the 2019 prom, however it was canceled the day before prom was to take place.  When creating the budget we still took into consideration the original cost of the venue even though this had already been paid.  Our account was in the negative due to ticket refunds and deposits that had been lost between 2019 and 2021.  Other items that we knew we wanted/needed to include was catering, t-shirts/swag, photobooth, court supplies, etc.  We came up with the overall budget based off an average of ticket sales in 2019 and 2021.  We chose these specific years because 2019 was a "normal" year for ticket sales and 2021 was a post-pandemic prom with restrictions.  We also needed to consider what action could be done to bring the prom account out of the negative so we could place a deposit on a venue for the 2023 prom.

After year one (2022), we knew there were things that needed to change in the budget for the upcoming year.  Mainly, we had to decide if t-shirts were really worth the money spent.  There were lots of shirts left over or not picked up, plus the stress of making sure that everyone who ordered a shirt and wanted a shirt received it, along with the correct size, etc.  Ultimately we decided that t-shirts were not worth the money and when the 2023 planning began it was decided we would utilize the money that had been budgeted for t-shirts into better "swag items".