LYNNFIELD — There will be a high school graduation after all.
In fact, there will be two of them.
The district announced plans to conduct a live, drive-by graduation ceremony on June 5 (rain date June 6), the original date set for graduation, at the high school. There will also be an on-field ceremony on July 24 (rain date July 25), also at the high school. Both ceremonies begin at 4 p.m.
The announcement came a couple of days after the state issued new guidelines regarding graduations. The guidelines allow high schools to hold outdoor, in-person ceremonies beginning July 19 provided requisite safety precautions are in place.
Until then, ceremonies can only be held “virtually or in extremely limited other circumstances following safety protocols (e.g., car parades),” according to the guidelines.
“The hope is that the Governor’s phased re-opening for our state continues on a positive path and we can execute that plan,” said Lynnfield High Principal Bob Cleary. “At the same time, we want to be respectful of the fact that many students/families have made plans and commitments around the June 5th date that was originally scheduled. Therefore we have developed a double option. Students can choose to participate in one, both, or neither if they wish.”
The June 5 plan permits one vehicle per graduate. Vehicles will be parked in pre-assigned spots and escorted onto the concourse alongside the concession stand. Each student, while wearing a face covering, will be let out of the car, one at a time, and walk onto the field. When his/her name is called the student will cross the stage to collect their diploma. Each student will then exit the stage and move to a designated area for a photo. Face covering can temporarily be taken off if desired for the photo, but must be put back on when leaving the area. Students will then get back in their car and then exit the campus.
Cleary said plans are in the works to livestream the speeches and diplomas so that larger/extended families can watch from home and that a condensed video of the ceremony will air on local cable, which will also be available for viewing at a later date.
The July 24 ceremony will limit each family to one graduate and three guests, who will be seated in pods of four chairs, 10 yards and eight feet apart. Extra seating will be available for families with more than one graduate.
Upon entering the school parking lot, families will be checked and then ushered onto the field, one family at a time. Following the ceremony, each family will be escorted off the field, one family at a time. Both ceremonies will include speaking programs.
“It’s been an exhausting process, but a good one,” said School Superintendent Jane Tremblay. “There has been an incredible amount of planning that has gone into this and we believe we have come up with an elaborate plan that will give the seniors a safe way to come up and get their diplomas. We still have an incredible amount of work to do, and the big thing is everyone needs to do their job and their job is to follow the rules.”
School Committee Chairman Jamie Hayman said the planning process was a collaborative effort.
“I could not be more appreciative of how hard Bob Cleary, (assistant principal) Brian Bates, Jane Tremblay, Chiefs David Breen (police) and Glenn Davis (fire), Rob Dolan (town administrator), and the LHS staff all worked to gather input from seniors and their families and put together a plan that recognizes and honors their hard work and achievement.”
Sunday night, a group of parents made one final push for an earlier in-person ceremony, emailing a letter to the members of the Lynnfield Emergency Management Team with a request to “schedule a safe, social distance graduation ceremony for Lynnfield High School on or before June 14.”
“We know that Austin Prep just conducted practically the exact ceremony we were planning, so we thought it was better to just ask, so at least we knew we had exhausted all efforts to give the seniors closure,” said Jane Skelley. “We know that everyone has done the best they could but we needed to have no regrets knowing we tried.”
