From jokes to serenades, promposal season at Andover is more than just a lead-up to the dance — it serves as a celebration of friendship, creativity, and community spirit. In this spread, students shared the stories behind their promposals, from elaborate performances in Paresky Commons to figure skating with a Zamboni. Whether romantic or platonic, each gesture reflects the bold, heartfelt energy that defines the Andover experience.
Avery Zheng ’25
“I asked Claire Cheng [’25]. I started a couple weeks ago, and brainstormed with a couple of friends. After that we sat down, made a poster, and I came up with a plan with both the boys and girls tennis teams. We had the boys and girls team sing ‘Marry You’ by Bruno Mars, and then we had them hold up individual letters that spelled: ‘Claire Prom W Me?’ One of her favorite movie franchises is How to Train Your Dragon, so the poster was centered around Toothless. She thought it was going to be during [New England Preparatory Athletic Council Championships] NEPSACS, so she was really surprised, and she was very unprepared. Also, there was a promposal right before, which threw [her] off a lot. It was definitely a nice way to end Senior year.”
Charles Vest ’25
“I asked Louisa Carter [’25], [and] my friends and I walked into [Paresky] Commons after [All-School Meeting] one Friday when Lower Right was extra packed. We started playing music from a speaker, and I sang the first verse in the chorus of [Did I Mention] from Disney’s ‘Descendants’ [while] the rest of my dorm mates did a choreographed dance behind me. I made a sign, and it was an inside joke from her and I’s days in The Phillipian. One of the articles we were writing was about the worst prom proposal ideas, and one idea was: call me a Jedi, the way I’m going to force you to go to prom with me. I [also] went and asked the current editors of Eighth page to make the headline that week about my asking her to prom. You could tell the second I walked in, she started cracking up and she had a big smile on her face… When I finished it and asked will you go to prom with me, she shot up with a big smile on her face and said yes. She kept saying: ‘Charles, this is awesome. This is the best promposal that you could have done,’ so I’m really glad that she enjoyed it.”
Tam Gavenas ’25
“I promposed to Ibuki Hada [’25]. I went to the maintenance at the ice hockey rink, and I [was] on the rink with the Zamboni. I had a great sign and flowers as well. She’s an ice skater, so that was the theme. The poster said, ‘If I Hada wish,’ because her last name’s Hada, ‘it would be to go to prom with Ibu.’ I was so nervous before because it took a really long time [but] my friends came out to the rink and were cheering me on. We had ‘Beauty and the Beast’ playing too. Ibu was super proud and super happy. I didn’t know how to skate, so I was holding onto the Zamboni for dear life. [Even though it was] a little complicated, especially when you’re not in a relationship with someone, just seeing them really happy makes the whole thing worth it.”
EV Heck ’25
“I asked Jaylen Daley [’25]. I had contacted Drumline and talked with the co-heads to pick out two songs for the intro and the exit that would go well with the promposal. My poster said, ‘You make my heart go boom, boom, boom, which was funny because I’m going with him as a friend.’ Promposals are very uplifting and really wholesome. I really love the promposal culture at Andover because it promotes doing big gestures for each other. One of the big reasons I wanted to prompose to Jaylen is because promposals are so much more than something you do for a person you’re in a relationship with. They are an act of love and care that shows your community your love for the people that you’ve spent all your years at Andover with. It’s one of the great things about Andover, that every year people do these crazy promposals. I had a lot of fun planning it, and it really felt like my time at Andover’s coming to an end. It was one of the things I wanted to get off my bucket list.”
