Cotillion for many years has always been hosted at Colonia High School in the gym. This year, the 2014 junior class officers, Mrs. McNamara, and Mrs. Greene have changed the Cotillion location to The Forge Inn in Woodbridge, New Jersey.

This surprised the seniors because the tradition of CHS has been that the Junior Cotillion was always held in the school gym and the Senior Prom is held at a banquet hall. It was previously felt that the Senior Prom should be more special which is why the location was at a hall instead of the gym.

Comments such as “it’s not fair” and “why didn’t we get that?” have risen into many heated debates. Senior Gabby Wilson indicated, “I’m pretty upset and jealous that they get such a nice place where we got the hot and sweaty gym.”

“The Cotillion is still going to be around the same price,” stated Mrs. McNamara.  This is what is primarily making seniors upset because the junior’s class of 2015 gets to have the dance at The Forge Banquet Hall and still have it at the same price of $50 per person and $100 per couple.

Why all of a sudden is there a break in traditions? “The reason cotillion is at The Forge is we want more people to come; we want to have just the juniors attend,” explained Mrs. Greene, Junior Class Advisor.

“Now having cotillion at the Forge Inn, there will be many different types of food then having it at the gym,” clarified Mrs. McNamara. At the Forge Inn they are having buffet style similar to the style when it was in the gym. For the last two years, teachers who chaperoned the dance in the gym had to serve the food to the students on the buffet line. This won’t be the case this year at The Forge.

When the Cotillion was in the gym, students generally felt they could skip the formal gowns and limos. Cocktail dresses were acceptable for a gym cotillion but will they e acceptable for The Forge? “I wouldn’t really dress any different than I would dress up here because it’s the same thing just at a different place,” answered a junior Alex Gall.

“Having cotillion at Colonia High is a lot much more work than it would be at the Forge, because they do everything for us; they decorate, they have the food already there and pretty much it’s like doing little bits of work”, stated Mrs. McNamara. Decorating the Colonia High gym took half the day; unlike this year where the junior students of CHS would be helping during the day and after school the day before cotillion.

For more information about The Forge Inn visit http://www.forgenj.com/.