If you've been seeing a lot of social media posts lately of high school seniors sitting on their beds surrounded by swag from a college, it's because their friends have thrown a "commitment party" or "bed party" to celebrate their selection of the school they'll attend in the fall.
May 1 is college decision day, the deadline by which students must put down a deposit on their chosen institution of higher learning. And as kids make their choices, they are feted by their best friends surprising them with their college's clothing, decorated cupcakes or cake, and balloons and snack food in the colors of their school-to-be. Parents help to facilitate the surprise factor to varying degrees, letting friends in the house, making sure the teen isn't home during the decorating, and in some cases helping to pay for the swag.
"It was very exciting," says Stephanie Zovich, 17, of New Hyde Park, who is a senior at St. Francis Preparatory School in Queens and plans to attend Amherst College in Massachusetts in the fall. "I opened my door and my closest friends were there to support me."
