The Winter Formal, previously known to Tallmadge as the “Sweethearts Dance”, is something that students have been trying to get approved for the 2022-’23 school year. Seniors Reagyn Mangano and Cirina Matos proposed the idea to Principal Mark Treen towards the beginning of the semester. Since then, students have been given the opportunity to vote via Google Form, for whether they would attend the dance or not. Students have hoped that a Winter Formals would come back for years now.

“We haven’t had [a Winter Formal] in a while. We just hope to bring energy back to the school, and it’s fun,” Mangano said. 

The Sweethearts Dance was first put on by the students in the Student Senate in 1995. This was the first winter dance to ever be held at the old Tallmadge High School building. The dance was not anything big and showy, but it was something fun to get students involved in the school. The first few years of the dance, few students came. In fact, Journalism Teacher Julie. Headrick said that there were about 50 kids there the first year, but each year there was more and more participation.

The Sweethearts Dance was shut down in 2008-2009 because most students were no longer attending. Plus, after issues with Homecoming earlier that year, the school did not want to put it on. In the final years of the dance there were about 100 kids attending; it was no longer worth the money and effort to put on a dance if so few kids were going to show up, Headrick said. 

This time, the students hope to bring back the event with renewed enthusiasm. There will be posters and fliers all around the school along with advertising on social media platforms. The dance will be funded by the Student Senate and planned by seniors Reagyn Mangano and Cirina Matos. 

“We would like to have a spirit week [before the dance], and we’re going to try to pair it up with a basketball game as well, like how Homecoming is,” Mangano said. 

Students will be able to get involved by talking to Mangano, Matos, or Student Senate Advisor Anna Blasko. Volunteer opportunities will also be offered to many different clubs throughout the school. 

“I would like a winter formal because I think it would be so fun to have another opportunity to dress up and make more memories with our friends.  Most other schools have winter dances, and it looks so fun.  I think it is just another part of our high school experience that we could add,” senior Ipek Kalkavan said. 

Current plans include the location of the dance to be in the Tallmadge High School Gym and the date Jan. 28, 2023. Student Senate participants plan to continue discussions regarding the possibility of a winter formal with Treen after Homecoming. 

“It’s not just going to be a dance,” Mangano said, “but it’s going to be a way to bring energy back into the school.”