Spring officially blossomed at Suffolk University Program Council’s annual Spring Ball April 5 at the Omni Parker House.
The tradition gave Suffolk undergrads a taste of homecoming and prom nostalgia as organizers transformed the Omni Parker House’s balcony ballroom into an enchanted forest for the evening.
Students chatted and danced as a DJ filled the room with music and food including pasta, breadsticks and salads that fueled the night.
Pink and blue lights illuminated the ballroom while a wall of hanging lights resembling vines hung behind the DJ booth, creating the “Enchanted Woods” Program Council was shooting for.
“I am so proud of everything that we’ve done, I think this is a combination of everything we have done this year and for that I’m really proud and I’m excited to see what comes next,” said Anja Wight, a member of the Program Council’s Entertainment Committee.
For Traditions Committee Chair Anna Plumb, the year-long planning of Spring Ball paid off with its impact on the Suffolk community.
“I have heard so many things from students who attended and had a blast,” said Plumb. “Overall, the impact was positive and awesome to see different groups of students come together and celebrate the year.”
The students agreed the Program Council’s Ball lived up to their expectations.
“This is great, PC did a great job with this,” said sophomore Owen Jaworski.
Opportunities to have formals like this one are common in colleges, but not a guaranteed experience to have again after high school.
“I had seen [formals] at other schools and I was really hoping they had something like this here, but I wouldn’t say I was necessarily expecting it, so I was super excited when they released all the promotional information about it,” said freshman Julia Valanzola. “I was like ‘Oh! An excuse to dress up!’”
Suffolk’s senior class entered college during the COVID-19 pandemic, meaning they missed out on what would have been their first Spring Ball, but for most, they also did not have a traditional senior prom, making the class’ final Spring Ball a special one.
“I’ll miss events like this, it’s something I’ve gone to every year that I’ve been here, except for freshmen year which was covid when everything was virtual, so it’s been nice to have something like this because I didn’t get to have senior prom,” said senior Lizzie Costa.
For many students, Spring Ball is an opportunity to get closer to their “Ramily” and to put on their finest clothes for a night of dancing.
“I love community, I love people, I love getting up and getting into silly little outfits and going out with my friends. It’s a lot of fun,” said sophomore Ian McKissick.
With the semester coming to a close, final papers, projects and tests are approaching. For many students, a moment to breathe, change out of hoodies and put down backpacks is needed for an academic and social balance. More than that, it is an opportunity for students to express themselves.
“It’s really nice to see everyone dressed up, I feel like in college you just see everybody in their sweatpants so it’s just really nice to be able to see everyone dressed up and having a great time,” said sophomore Emily Corrao.
