OAK PARK : Panel Opposes Hotel Stays for Students
Concerns about teen-agers drinking have prompted the Oak Park school board to take a stand officially discouraging students from spending the night in hotel rooms after school dances and proms, district officials said.
On Tuesday, the board unanimously passed a resolution against students spending nights in hotel rooms without adult supervision after homecoming dances, proms or other parties, district spokeswoman Harriett Ramsey said.
“Students can still do what they want to do,” Ramsey said. “We’re just making a statement that we don’t approve.”
Oak Park High School will hold its homecoming dance tonight. But most of the students who attend homecoming dances are freshmen and sophomores, who are less likely than older students to rent hotel rooms after school parties, said Cliff Moore, dean of students.
The resolution was primarily aimed for the students who will attend the junior-senior prom that is held each spring, Moore said.
The board resolution grew out of the results of a school district survey last year, which showed that “drinking was a problem” for Oak Park students, Moore said.
Reaction from parents to the resolution has been mixed, he said.
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