Seniors will pick up diplomas in drive-through graduation ceremony June 1

May 10, 2020 — by Nitya Marimuthu
graduation

Due to tight county-wide COVID-19 restrictions, the senior class and administrators plan to live-stream the diploma presentation as graduates drive through.

    After receiving a green light from the county, the diploma presentation ceremony for the Class of 2020 will take place on June 1 on the top of the stairs at the McAfee Center. 
According to principal Greg Louie, graduates will come to the center at a scheduled time with any immediate family members in one car and will commence in an orderly manner that maintains social distancing while efficiently streamlining graduates.
    The procession — consisting of graduates in their cars — will start near the parking lot by the stadium and will proceed toward the McAfee Center. Graduates’ families will pull into a designated spot one by one. Upon stopping, the student will exit the car and go up the ramp to the McAfee, and after having their name announced will pick up the diploma cover. They will then exit the stage, return any borrowed gowns, go back to their car and exit through the lot by the stadium. 
    The administration hopes to live-stream the ceremony to embed it into a virtual graduation on June 4 for those who cannot be there in person. As of right now, the senior class office does not have more information about the virtual graduation as the platform is undecided. 
    Senior class representative Emma Hsu said that senior class officers and administration have been considering many options, including holding a traditional graduation in August, but eventually settled upon this model. She said that this was not the ideal situation, but that she is optimistic that the virtual graduation will still be meaningful to seniors and their families. 
    “Personally, I am quite bummed that we are having a drive-through diploma pick up and a virtual graduation this year, because I have been looking forward to all senior activities since my freshman year, and the effects of the COVID-19 precautions changed so many plans in an instant,” Hsu said. 
    Senior Armina Mayya called the modified graduation “pretty depressing” and not what she was looking forward to. Even so, she understands that administration and the senior class officers are trying to accommodate as much as possible, and the situation is unlucky. 
    “[The modified graduation is] a very anticlimactic end to high school, but I understand that it’s the best we can do [due to] COVID-19,” Mayya said. “I am just super grateful for the administration and class officers for organizing all of this for us.” 
 

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