MOSES LAKE — A recent controversy surrounding who can attend the upcoming Moses Lake High School Homecoming dance stems from constitutional changes approved by the school's Associated Student Body months before the start of the school year, according to the Moses Lake School District. 

Some parents and students have expressed frustration via social media on how the changes have impacted the ability for students to attend dances this year. According to the district, Vanguard Academy and Digital Learning students may only attend the MLHS Homecoming if they are invited as a plus one guest by a MLHS student. Last year, students from Vanguard and Digital were able to purchase tickets without attending with a MLHS student, but recent MLHS ASB constitution changes now prohibit that.  

“It is virtually never allowed for students from other high school entities to attend a high school dance without an approved guest pass,” Superintendent Carol Lewis said. “In Washington state and across most U.S. school districts high school dances are considered closed-campus events. This policy applies even if the visiting student attends a different high school within the same school district.”  

In a statement released Tuesday, the district said they have heard “frustration and confusion from students, families, staff and community members” and sought to explain how the situation developed. 

According to the district, dances and many other student activities are governed by high school ASB constitutions. MLHS and Vanguard Academy operate separate ASBs, each with its own leadership, adviser and student funds. 

“That distinction is important to understanding how we arrived here,” the district said in its statement. 

The district said the MLHS ASB reviewed and amended its constitution during an April 2026 meeting. The changes were made after students discussed capacity and safety concerns related to dances held on campus. 

“As I understand, at the April 22 meeting of the Moses Lake High School ASB, the ASB students had a discussion about changes to their constitution, and they subsequently voted, and those changes were approved at the April meeting,” Moses Lake School District Director of Public Relations Ryan Shannon said. 

Shannon said the decision was made by the student-led ASB and was not a reaction to the current debate surrounding Homecoming. 

“The changes made by the ASB were shared with the administrators at Vanguard Academy and the Digital Learning Center in May,” Shannon said. 

Under Washington's ASB structure, students serving in student government have decision-making authority over their organizations while operating under district policies and state law. According to RCW 28A.325.020, an associated student body is a formal student organization approved and regulated by a school district's board of directors. 

Shannon said ASB students are responsible for governing many student activities and managing student-raised funds. 

“The students in ASBs are set up to encourage student government,” Shannon said. “The students are the decision-making body of ASB.” 

He added that ASB members oversee budgets, fundraising and constitutional changes. 

According to Shannon, capacity limitations played a significant role in the constitutional amendments. He said the space used for dances can hold roughly 1,000 students without decorations or tables, but capacity must be reduced when those elements are added. 

The district's statement said the ASB considered safety concerns related to the capacity of MLHS’s facility for dances, including the need to comply with fire codes. 

“School administrators enforce strict guest rules for three primary reasons including safety and liability,” Lewis said. “School staff and chaperones are legally responsible for everyone inside the venue. They must have a verified roster of exactly who is on-site in case of an emergency; behavior and accountability. The guest pass process requires the visiting student’s home school principal to sign off, verifying that the student is in good behavioral standings and has no active suspensions; capacity limits: venues, like school gyms or rented banquet halls have strict fire-code limits,” 

Shannon said Vanguard Academy has operated with its own ASB since the school's creation. 

“Vanguard, they have their own ASB, and they have had their own ASB since the inception of the school, as well as a paid ASB advisor,” he said. “All the funds that are raised from those ASB card sales stay at Vanguard.” 

Lewis said the priority for ticket sales is usually given to the school’s own student body, in this case, MLHS.  

District officials acknowledged the current controversy may have highlighted broader questions about how the district's high school programs interact. As a result, the district plans to begin a review of its high school academic programming, school structures and student opportunities, with parent and community participation expected as part of that process. 

“We do want our students, families and staff to have the full context surrounding what has occurred and to know that we are listening to what this situation has brought forward,” the district said in its statement.