Putting a price on graduation

Never mind how many words they're worth, the bottom line for pictures can be about $300 if you're one of this year's graduating seniors at Cape Girardeau's Central High School.

But that's just the tip of the graduation-product iceberg. Members of the class of 2004 are charging many of their unforgettable moments to their parents' credit cards, and the companies that peddle those memories could tap them for hundreds of dollars each.

Decades from now, when today's high school students trick their grandchildren into listening to a story about the good old days, they'll have a cartload of props to keep the children's interest.

The price tag on the loot that a senior may take home, including a class ring, letter jacket, '04 tassles, keychains, custom T-shirts, graduation cap and gown, invitations and thank-you cards rivals the costs of the things that won't end up in the attic, such as prom, the class trip, ACT and college application fees.

Prom, for example, could cost hundreds. Tuxedo rentals can run from $70 to $100, dresses cost from $150 to $350 plus shoes and jewelry. Corsages and boutonnieres run from $6 to $13, then there's the price of dinner.

It's an ominous foreshadowing of the greater college expenses to come.

"He's worth it," Mary Obergoenner said of her son, Todd ,while waiting in line to buy a graduation packet from a Josten's representative on Wednesday. She planned to purchase the basic $100 package with none of the frills like extra announcements, sterling silver charms or a graduation cap keepsake box. The Obergoenners didn't get pictures, but they splurged on a ring -- $300 -- and Todd had already bought a letter jacket his sophomore year. Like many high school students, his parents will foot the bill.

"We told him that as long as he kept his grades up and kept practicing golf we didn't want him to work," Mary said.

Senior Ashley Whitmore chose a bigger Josten's package at $215, a ring -- $100 -- and intends to have her pictures taken later. She splits the bill with her parents, covering her part with the help of a part-time job.

Janet Presson holds a pragmatic perspective on the products she buys for her graduating son, Mark.

"We splurged on a jacket and pictures," she said, "and held back on this other stuff because it will just end up in a box." That letter jacket cost $300, she said, as did the pictures, and their graduation package was the minimum $100.

Rachael Stubbs hadn't decided what she wanted from Jostens, but she's trying not to spend too much so she can afford a decent car and a college education.

"I won't let my mom pay for it," she said. "I'm trying to prove to myself that I can take care of myself. She gets mad at me for it." Rachael holds a weekend job at McDonald's and a once-a-week evening shift at Big River Telephone. She'll get her ring where it's cheaper, she said, for $90 at Wal-Mart, and will get her pictures later.

"I always thought that I was saving money just for college but I never considered that there was stuff to pay for in high school. I'm using part of my college money for it," she said.

Mark Williams, the Josten's representative at the high school, said that the average senior will spend $150 on merchandise.

rgoodier@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 127