@lyxchen I'm old - graduated in 1991, so I started (public) high school in 1987, close to ST's time period.
First, I'd say you "take" an exam, not that you "write" one, just FYI. Most exams would've been on Scantron sheets/multiple choice because this was before they moved to have high school students write so much.
In my particular high school, we had semesters, so school was broken into two halves, Sept-Jan & Jan-first week in June, with exams at the end of each semester. Most classes continued all year, but some were only one-semester long (health, driver's ed, etc.) We had 7 class periods per day and went from 7:30-2:30, so, like, I'd say I have Calculus first period and then English second period or whatever.
From what I recall, regular school would end on, say, the final Thursday in May, and then Friday, Monday, and Tuesday you'd spend 1/2 the day taking each of 2 finals. So Friday morning you'd go to first period and take the exam all morning, then take the exam for second period in the afternoon. Monday would be 3-4, Tuesday would be 5-6, and then Wednesday you'd take the exam for 7th period and then school was over for the year ~noonish.
And then the actual graduation ceremony was that Friday. So, pretty fast, not a lot of time in-between. And no school-sponsored party after that, that I recall, although students/their families did throw parties.
(In college there were a few "reading days" to study between the end of regular classes and the start of exams, but I don't remember having those in high school.)
One thing you do seem to be a little confused about: just about every class has a final exam, for all four years of high school. I think there are actually tests you have to pass to graduate now, just like basic reading and math? In some states, maybe? But that wasn't a thing back then. It's not like, oh, this is an exam to see whether you can graduate.
It's just, again, like college--you get to the end and there's a big test over everything you've learned all semester, and it's a big part of your grade. So there wouldn't be some kids already on Summer vacation--the freshman would have to take their own exams at the same time as the seniors were taking theirs.
Where it factors into graduating is if you're a senior taking a class you need to graduate, then it's possible, if you fail the exam and therefore fail the class, that you might not get to graduate. There were always those stories about people dressed in their cap and gown, ready to graduate, and they're pulled out of line because they failed senior English and have to go to summer school instead of graduating.
I'm pretty sure they'd mail your final report card once the final exams were graded.
At my school, prom happened way earlier. I just looked at the school, and prom last year was on 4/26 vs. final exams ending on 5/29. And we had one prom that anyone could go to, as far as I know. No separate proms for juniors and seniors.
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