High school seniors flooding Ocean City for a week of post-graduation partying have been known to cause occasional chaos. But commotion or not, they come at a good time.

“These graduates are our bread-and-butter during the month of June,” said Donna Greenwood, chairwoman of the Ocean City Drug and Alcohol Abuse Prevention Committee. “The impact [Senior Week] has on businesses in the area helps for the early part of summer when the rest of the kids are still in school [and] families aren't traveling.”

Greenwood is also the spokeswoman for Play It Safe, a program that provides activities for high school graduates to encourage healthy choices while having responsible fun without the use of alcohol and other drugs.

Even though Play It Safe participation continues to increase, the number of arrests and citations for open-container alcohol violations still rose from 585 in 2006 to 692 in 2007. Senior Week arrests make up about 13.5 percent of total arrests during the year, said Mike Levy, public affairs officer for the Ocean City Police Department.

This story continues below
Advertisement

“Ocean City doesn't mean out-of-control,” said Levy. “That doesn't mean you can't have fun. But if you have an accident, you're not going to feel comfortable about being here.”

Last year, more than 13,000 kids came to almost 60 events from June 2 to June 20, the highest turnout since the Play It Safe program started in 1989. Turnout has increased this year for Play It Safe due to aggressive publicity, word of mouth and the offer of free bus fare for participants, said Greenwood.

“It saves kids money, it's fun, and they get to meet people from other schools and other states in a safe environment,” said Greenwood.

Activities offered by Play It Safe include karaoke, windsurfing and kayak relays, midnight bowling, miniature golf, beach volleyball and pancake- eating contests. The all-volunteer committee received a $10,000 grant from the Governor's Office of Crime Control & Prevention for printing and distributing 70,000 booklets to high schools across Maryland in preparation for Senior Week.

“We want them to have a good experience because hopefully they'll come back when they grow up and have families of their own,” said Donna Abbot, spokeswoman for the Ocean City Department of Tourism.