Graduation during COVID: How schools are celebrating safely

Graduation during COVID: How schools are celebrating safely

Lucas Fiscus
eSomethin Staff

High school graduation is supposed to be a moment of pride and achievement, but how does one celebrate during a worldwide pandemic? Many high schools across the country are dealing with this question in a variety of ways.

Here in Perrysburg, there will be in-person graduation for our seniors. Only the immediate family will be allowed to witness the seniors receive their diploma and will then have to leave the auditorium for the next family to enter. The ceremony will be taped and edited together for the family. This method limits contact with others and works within the parameters of social distancing.

Other schools are using slightly different strategies. One school in Charleston, South Carolina, is delaying their graduation until July.

Pleasant Grove High School in Utah is starting their virtual ceremony with fireworks, followed by a multi-day graduation walk similar to Perrysburg High School. Students at Pleasant Grove will have their names announced over their P.A. and have time to take photos outside of their school.

Most virtual graduations follow that basic formula, some adding pre-recorded segments and highlights from the year. There are some outliers like the college in Japan (Business Breakthrough (BBT) University) using robots with screens showing the student’s faces on screens to simulate graduation.

While these seniors are still getting a graduation ceremony, it is still highly unorthodox and strange for many. It’s important to think about those seniors at this time and show your excitement and pride in them in your own way. Posting photos of the good times and sharing heartwarming messages to them over social media goes a long way in helping our seniors get through these tough times.

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