On Oct. 6, Peddie junior and senior classes met to address allegedly inappropriate behaviors at school dances. The student council relayed the administration’s decision to the upperclassmen that were sexually suggestive activities to happen in future dances, all school dances will be prohibited.

Although dances have long been a part of the Peddie culture, the student council and members of the faculty have recently objected to dancing that involved sexually-suggestive behaviors.

A recent court case involving a student at private boarding school in New Hampshire heightened concerns about the dances. Administrators were concerned about so-called “Baby Prom,” a dance at Peddie where underclassmen take upperclassmen to be their dates, could somehow escalate to a situation similar to St. Paul’s.

“Baby Prom was originally created for ninth and tenth graders because at that point, they weren’t invited to the junior-senior prom. It was supposed to be a dance for them, so I would like to see it return to that,” Melanie Clements, assistant head for student life, said.

In order to relay their worries to the student body, the student representatives split the students into grade and gender groups and discussed some of the concerns of not only Baby Prom, but school dances in general. Respect and “grinding”, which is when two people rub their bodies against each other, were two of the main topics discussed. The underclassmen were left out from the discussion, since the upperclassmen should be the ones to act as leaders and role models for the younger students, representatives said.

“School dances are a great way for students to relax, have fun, and enjoy a night without stress…I feel it is our job as leaders to make sure we are keeping dances, a student-led activity, as comfortable and fair for our fellow classmates and even the faculty who chaperone,” said Uzo Achebe ’16, student body co- president.

Although some students met the administration’s decision on dances with indifference or even approval, other students felt that it was unfair, which was an initial concern for the student council.

“I do know, from having conversations with [the student council], that they were especially concerned with students not attending dances prior to this decision. They thought that many students [would choose] not to come to dances because people don’t really dance,” Peter McClellan, dean of students, said.

The first dance after the meeting on Oct. 10 proved the student council’s concerns, as students who had attended the dance recalled that less than 50 people had been there.

“I had gone [to the dance] just to stop by for 5 minutes, but I left right after. There was almost no one there and practically no one was dancing,” Charleen Chen ’17 said.

The faculty is still hoping that students will gradually return to school dances, as they realize that dances can be fun and respectful at the same time.

“I’m hoping that students support this, because I think that they all want to treat each other with respect, and that is really what this is all about,” Clements said.