Debs (ball)

[7] A Debs or Grads (known in County Donegal and other parts of Ulster as "the Prom" or "the Formal")[4][5][6] is often organised by someone other than the school itself.

[8] In some cases, a student committee is created within the school to organise the event in collaboration with selected teachers or parents.

[citation needed] It is customary for men to purchase a corsage, flowers or a box of chocolates for their dates if they are women.

[12] In 1998, at a hearing between Judge Desmond Windle and a school solicitor from Newpark Comprehensive about a late night bar extension, the judge stated that the term "Debs ball" should not be used to describe a school leavers dance because its origins were in "archaic" practices associated with royal courts, and "nothing to do with a Republic".

[13] News outlets in 2012 and 2013 published articles featuring the money spent by attendees, on average €695-€825 on the night, including spend on dresses.