Seniors Shafted: Shingle Springs Students' Plans Change After Six Flags Cancellation

SHINGLE SPRINGS (CBS13) — The seniors at Ponderosa High School in Shingle Springs paid money to go to the Six Flags amusement park for the day-- but ended up at a movie theater instead.

Many seniors are disappointed, and say their hopes were crushed, after waiting for years for the trip that was canceled at the last-minute.

"Since freshman year we were all looking forward to going to Six Flags together because every class says that's the best trip," said Erika Rice, a senior at Ponderosa High.

It was the talk of the senior class, but on Monday, the class of 2016 spent their morning at the movie theater.

"Like the whole ride there we were like this sucks like we could be going to six flags right now," said Haley Ortiz, who is upset she couldn't spend more time with her fellow classmates.

An email was sent out by the school to seniors and their parents on Sunday, notifying them the trip to Six Flags wasn't happening because of "an unexpected private event."

The last-minute change of plans crushed all the excitement most seniors were looking forward to all year.

Ortiz says "all my friends and me were just so mad about it, we were just like 'OKthis is the one time we get to all hang out together and experience our last week of high school.'"

Lisa Garrett, the principal of Ponderosa High, says a staff member was in the process of confirming Monday's trip over the weekend when they discovered Six Flags would be closed that day for a private event.

"We immediately went into what can we do as an alternative event for the seniors. We explored a number of options including an amusement park in Reno, going further south to Santa Cruz…"

Garrett says that backup plan would have caused seniors to spend more time on the road instead of engaging in activities.

But some seniors took the last-minute change in stride, saying it's not where you go, but how you can make the best out of your situation.

School officials tell CBS 13 that seniors will be getting a refund for their tickets.

The school is now looking into why it wasn't told about the closure when it purchased Six Flags tickets a few weeks ago.