DUBUQUE, Iowa – Each student attending the Wahlert High School prom over the weekend was required to have their breath-tested for alcohol by a school administrator or Dubuque County sheriff's deputy.
Parents and students signed waivers clearing the way for the school to administer the Breathalyzer test.
"I've heard other students say they might not go to prom because of this," said senior Jordan Krueger, as she got her picture taken with her date before the dance on Saturday at a Dubuque hotel.
She and her friend, Kelly Schneider, willingly lined up to take the breath test, saying their desire to go to prom outweighed the testing.
"People have been saying it's ridiculous and stupid," said Schneider. "I don't mind it."
Wahlert principal Don Sisler said the breath test is the school's way of reiterating its zero-tolerance policy on alcohol use.
"The bottom line is students don't have the right to break the law and drink underage," he said, adding that "parents have been wildly supportive" of the testing.
School districts nationwide have using the Breathalyzer tool and says it's a way to prevent alcohol-related accidents.
Wahlert student body president Michael Lehmann said there was opposition to the testing.
"It invades everyone's privacy who wants to go to the dance and have fun," he said.
Other students circulated petitions against the new breath-test rule.
So what happens if a student's test shows that they've been drinking?
Sisler said their parents would be called and would have to pick up their child.
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