Those in attendance at Saturday night’s “Bad Prom” made the most of the evening, despite a lower turnout than expected.

And even though only about 20 people showed up for the annual event, members of PRIDE!Kent said they weren’t discouraged.

“It’s the end of the year, and there’s a lot of stuff going on,” said Clare Ford, freshman exploratory major. “Even some members of our board couldn’t come because of work or other things.”

Carrie Wicks, vice president of PRIDE!Kent, said the reason for a low turnout at this year’s prom compared to last year’s might have to do with the group’s continual drop-off throughout the semester.

“There just hasn’t been anything steady this year,” she said.

President of PRIDE!Kent Kevin Casimer said among other things, the drop-off has to do with a lack of presence after winter break.

“The beginning of any semester is really when you build your base,” he said. “And we just didn’t get anyone.”

The reelecting of the executive board in the middle of the semester and holding meetings on Thursday night are also things Casimer said has hurt the group.

“Thursday night is when a lot of other events and things are going on around campus,” he said. “Also, a lot of the members who left because of former leadership just never came back after the new board was elected.”

Ford said it might even be a positive thing that not many people showed up for prom.

“The reason we have gay prom is so that kids who may not have been able to go to their high school prom because of discrimination or something, can bring who they want and still have the experience,” she said.

She said whether or not people came wasn’t the main concern, because it’s still a big deal in the LGBT community to hold an event like this each year.

Wicks agreed with Ford.

“It’s still important, and we still did it and followed through,” she said. “At least we didn’t give up on it. It’s a learning experience, and it’ll get better.”

Contact minority affairs reporter Elise Franco at [email protected].