Information
for Parents 
Why should your seniors to go to Grad Night?
Graduation Day can be one of the most joyous times in a student's life. Unfortunately, Graduation Night is statistically the most dangerous. After graduation, seniors want to celebrate. However, all-too-often these celebrations have had tragic results. Students have gotten injured or worse or have gotten in legal trouble. This has happened all over the world, including in our own school district. Parent organizations everywhere have organized Grad Night parties as a way to combat this. Lincoln's Grad Night party provides our students a way to celebrate their graduation without the dangers of drugs, alcohol, auto accidents, or violence. They are in a controlled, supervised, smoke-free environment, but can still have fun with their friends. This may be the last chance they will have to do this before they go their separate ways. Here is what you can do:- Talk to your students about their post-graduation plans.
- If they decide they want to go to Grad Night, help them with the paperwork (the emergency card).
- Encourage and help them to buy their tickets early.
- On graduation night, help them to get to school on time and with the required paperwork.
- Make sure they have a way to return from school the next morning.
- Lincoln's Grad Night party is the only one officially sanctioned by the Lincoln High School PTSA and approved by the school.
- It is continually chaperoned by parent volunteers, school staff, and professional staff at the party location.
- Only Lincoln seniors are allowed at the party. No outsiders are allowed in, and no one is allowed to leave early.
- Chartered buses, supervised by chaperones, provide all transportation.
- All students will be accounted for. No one can be left behind.
- Transit time to the party location is only about 40 minutes each way, leaving students plenty of time to enjoy the party.
- It is a non-profit activity, and even students who cannot afford it can get financial assistance to go.
- All expenses are paid with the ticket sales, including food. Students do not need to bring any money unless they want to.
Parent Volunteers
Grad Night depends on parent volunteers. It cannot happen and cannot be successful without the help of volunteers. Parents of seniors are needed, but parents of freshmen to juniors are also needed on graduation day because senior parents will be busy going to graduation. Volunteers are needed to help publicize Grad Night, sell tickets, help with fundraising, contact sponsors for donations of food or money, pick up donated food, help load the buses, and chaperone the event. Parents who want to help should join or contact the Grad Night Committee.The Grad Night Committee
The Grad Night Committee works under the auspices of the Lincoln High School PTSA. Grad Night is covered by the PTSA's insurance.Last year we had a cost from Camelot Park
of $60 per student, including bus fare, but not including food. We charged
$60 per ticket. This year, the cost has gone up to $65, so we will probably
have to charge more. The park requires that we pay for a minimum of 200
students, even if 200 do not show up. The first deposit is due in early
May, and the balance is due at the end of May, so it is important to sell
tickets before then.
Grad Night Information 
Students will gather at Lincoln on Grad Night
to be picked up by buses. Using the charted bus transportation is mandatory.
Private transportation is not allowed. The buses will transport the students
directly to and from Camelot Park in Livermore. (Click here for a map.)
The students check in and are given wrist bands. They will have emergency
contact cards that they give to the chaperones. These will be used to make
sure no one gets left behind. The students will have filled out emergency
medical forms earlier. The main chaperone has all the medical forms in
a binder. The students are also given mementos, typically keyrings.
The
chaperones and staff at Camelot Park will make sure no one enters or leaves
the facility without authorization. Students will not be allowed
to come and go out of the facility. Lincoln seniors will have the entire
facility to themselves all night.
Grad Night Sub-Committees 
Volunteers are needed for the following sub-committees:
- Food Committee: to save money, we provide food for the students. We need people to solicit donations of food from local vendors, such as pizza parlors, burrito restaurants, and sandwich places. We also need people to go after the food just before grad night and deliver them to the buses or Camelot Park.
- Publicity Committee: We need people to make and distribute posters, flyers, and other media to publicize Grad Night and related activities. They need to publicize and acknowledge donations from sponsors. They need to make letters to parents informing them of Grad Night. They need to provide articles and notices on Grad Night activities to be included in the school newspaper. Students can be recruited to help with this.
- Ticket Sales: We need people to organize and plan the ticket sales, man the sales booths, and collect the money. The committee needs to work out details such as when to start selling tickets, how much to collect (all at once or in installments), whether to have incentives for early sales, and what kind of incentives to offer. They need to work with the publicity committee to publicize the sales.
- Entertainment: We need someone to decide on and arrange the entertainment at Grad Night that is not provided by Camelot Park, if any.
- Chaperones: Camelot Park requires 3 chaperones per 100 people. In the past around 230-240 students have attended, so we will need about 7-8 chaperones. We need people to check-in the students as they arrive at Lincoln to load into the buses. The students will check back in as they load into the buses for the return trip.
- Fundraising: Most of the cost of Grad Night will be covered by ticket sales. However, extra funds are needed for other expenses. We need people to organize the fundraising activities. In the past, we have done things like selling eggrolls at school during lunch and publicizing special school nights at local pizza parlors, where part of the profits during that night are donated to the school. We held a flea market a few years ago. We have also solicited donations from sponsors. Other ideas are welcome, as are people to follow through with them.
- Committee Chairperson(s): We need one or two people to act as chairpersons for the entire Grad Night Committee, to organize meetings, coordinate the subcommittees to make sure that all bases are covered, and to be a focal point for information. They need to report the progress of the comittee to the PTSA every month.
Committee Meetings 
Grad Night meetings have started already.
Camelot Park was chosen as the venue at the first PTSA meeting. The next
meeting will be on February 27, 2003 at 7:00 pm in
the Media Center. All are invited, including students.
As sub-committees form and more plans become made, this Web site can be used as a means of communications between the sub-committees.
2003's Committee Members
- Chairperson: Sue Suttle
- Treasurer: open
- Entertainment: Ronald Horii
- Food Committee: Judy Frazier, Candice Stein
- Ticket Sales: Marla McKellar-Ayoung & Lisa Lesnikoski
- Publicity: Maureen Wincor, Autumn Gutierrez
- Fund Raising: Mary Helen Doherty
- Eggroll Sales: Jan Finger, Janet MacConnell
- Chaperones: open
- Bus Loading/Check-in: Lore Osaki-Horii
- Webmaster: Ronald Horii
Help wanted:
- Ticket sales will begin early in 2003. We need people to help with the ticket sales. Ticket sales are normally during lunch hour, so they need to be available at lunchtime.
- We need more people for the fundraising committee. Food sales were the most successful fundraiser, but other ideas are welcome. We need people to organize these fundraisers.
- We need help soliciting donations of food for Grad Night and merchandise for raffle prizes to enourage ticket sales.
- We need help with arranging for supplemental entertainment.
- As we get near Grad Night, we will need chaperones and someone to help coordinate them.
See here for last year's parent information page.
See here for last year's committee information page.
This year's committee members, click here.
Return to the Grad Night home page
For questions or comments, E-Mail us.
Last update: 1/21/2003 by Ronald Horii, Webmaster
Abraham Lincoln High School PTSA, San Jose, California