Seventeen-year-old Sarah Rohrbaugh, left, of Emmitsburg, laughs with her mother Kim Rohrbaugh during the younger Ms. Rohrbaugh's prom at the Carriage House Inn in Emmitsburg. Ms. Rohrbaugh graduated from Upcounty Family Center.

The center primarily serves parents of children younger than 3, helping them achieve high school diplomas or GEDs through the county's Flexible Evening High School program. In addition to academic services, the center offers an on-site day-care center and teaches parenting skills.

The center also teaches young parents job-search skills and helps college-bound students fill out financial-aid forms.

"All of us girls got together and said, 'We should have a prom.' We got to talking more and more and more and it finally happened," said Melissa Summers of Walkersville, who left high school three years ago after she became pregnant.

Ms. Summers said the road to graduation was a long and difficult one and credited the family center for helping her make it happen.

"They deserve it," said Tina Copenhaver, a former employee of the center and mother of a student in the program. "Everybody wants to dress up and have a prom and graduate."

"Often, it's the girl who doesn't get to do this stuff, not the guy. It's the parenting girls who get penalized," said Ms. Copenhaver, whose daughter is in the program but not yet a parent.

It's mostly young women who go to the family center, although one of this year's 12 graduates is male.

That student, Paul Eyler, was at the prom Thursday with Sarah Rohrbaugh, also a student at the family center. The couple left their 2-year-old daughter, Kaylee Eyler, with a babysitter for the night.

The couple was joined by their parents and other family members, but Ms. Rohrbaugh said it felt strange not having her daughter present.

"It feels funny to be out without her," Ms. Rohrbaugh said. "But it feels good."

Mr. Eyler, who should have graduated in 1999, was one course shy of graduating when he quit. He made up the geometry credit at the family center.

"(A diploma) is something you need to have now," he said.

Ms. Rohrbaugh, like several of her classmates, is thinking of going on to Frederick Community College (FCC) after graduation.

Ann White, an interventionist for the center, said the responsibility of being parents sets these students apart from regular high-schoolers.

"It's a battle for them between being teens and being moms sometimes," Ms. White said. "They grow up as their children grow. They get excited about the milestones their children reach and we get excited about the milestones they reach."

Bob Hance, owner of the Carriage House Inn and president of the family center's board of trustees, donated the food and facilities for the graduation event.

"The kids stepped up to the plate, and I think we should step up to the plate, too," said Mr. Hance, crediting his restaurant's staff for their help with the evening.

"It's great to see them get a second chance and take advantage of it," Mr. Hance said.

Teacher Sharla Worley said the evening would bring closure to an important part of the students' lives.

"It's important (that) they are able to celebrate their successes. They've set goals and achieved them," Ms. Worley said. "It's important to celebrate one success before they move on to another goal."

After dinner ended, a few promgoers snuck outside for smokes. They talked about the school years behind them and the evening ahead.

Brandi Lewis of Walkersville said regular high schools just can't accommodate the needs of a pregnant or parenting student. For instance, they won't tolerate a pregnant student's need to make seven trips a day to the bathroom, she said.

Ms. Lewis, who has a 16-month-old son, said she believes the family center really cares about the future of its students, and if it hadn't been for the one-on-one attention she received from the staff, she wouldn't be graduating.

After graduation, Ms. Lewis said she is interested in going to FCC to pursue studies in interior design or cosmetology.

Turning back to the evening at hand, she said, "Now, I just can't wait to go back in there and dance."