Our district has not yet announced plans. Our district and others are at least posting congratulatory pictures on Facebook of each senior.
Other districts began announcing plans yesterday.
This graduation ceremony plan is for a beach side town in our area
Bay-Waveland is the first in South Mississippi to announce its plan, which includes a drive-in commencement ceremony, a parade of Jeeps, tents for each individual student, and all of the pomp and circumstance the district is able to do while still staying within the social distancing guidelines.
The Bay High graduation is set for Friday, May 22, 2020.
“We’re going to put all graduates in their own jeep. We’re going to drive them into the football stadium, kind of old-fashion drive-in style, and we’re going to speak and broadcast from up in the press box,” said Bay-Waveland Superintendent Sandra Reed.
Graduates and their parents will park in the Bay High parking lot, where someone driving a Jeep - or a “volunteer Jeeper” as the district calls them - will pick the student and his parents up. The Jeep will take the senior to the football stadium.
Once all the Jeeps are parked, everyone will remain in their vehicles while the administration, valedictorian and salutatorian deliver their commencement speeches. Similar to an old-fashioned drive-in movie, the district will broadcast the speeches on public radio. It will also be broadcast on Facebook Live.
Once the speeches are over, the procession of Jeeps will travel to the Bay-Waveland School District viewing area, where each senior will be given his diploma and professionally photographed. This moment would also be streamed live.
Then, the district will give each student a baseball cap to wear in place of their graduation cap as the seniors get back in their Jeeps, making sure the hats don’t blow off as the parade continues down Highway 90.
The vehicles will then travel down Highway 90 in the westbound lane. Each graduate will have their own tent that can be decorated with signs celebrating their achievements. Those tents will be allowed to have up to 10 people, with 4-5 parking spaces next to each tent for the student’s loved ones.
As each graduate arrives at their tent, they will be greeted by friends and family who can make as much noise as possible to celebrate and quickly snap a few pics.
The parade will continue pass a viewing stand in Bay St. Louis and another one in Waveland, which will have city, county, and state officials that typically attend graduation ceremonies.
The Jeeps will then return to the Bay High parking lot, where graduates and their parents can return to their vehicles.
Here's another-announced today
Gulfport High School's graduating seniors will get to walk across a stage and accept their diplomas on their originally scheduled graduation date, with a few modifications.
During the week of May 11-15, each senior and up to four family members (parents and/or legal guardians only) will have a scheduled time to report to the Ray Bishop Auditorium. Each senior will have a cap and gown picture taken by a professional photographer. The Gulfport School District will purchase an 8x10 for each student as a token of appreciation.
Video will then be recorded of each student taking the traditional walk across the stage to receive their diploma. Those individual videos will be edited together into a full graduation ceremony, which will also include:
- The Marine JROTC Pledge of Allegiance
- A performance by a few members of the GHS Choir
- Recognition of the Valedictorian and Salutatorian
- Speeches from the Valedictorian and the Senior Class President
- Senior Video
- Presentation of the Class
- Senior Student Message
The video will be aired on
AdmiralNation.comon May 27, 2020, at 7:00 p.m., which was the original graduation date. Students will be able to watch their own graduation for the first time in the presence of family, and it will also be available to the Gulfport community and any out of town family members.
And another. Each is very different and shows glimpses to the culture of that district
George County High School seniors will take part in two separate drive-thru graduation ceremonies scheduled for 5pm on May 21 and May 22.
The May 21 ceremony will honor the Top 20 students, Collegiate Academy students, and STEM Academy students. The May 22 ceremony will honor the CAAB Academy students and HHS Academy students.
Each graduate will be given two tickets which will allowed them two vehicles in the graduation procession. Each vehicle must present a ticket in order to join the line.
The vehicles will enter the school property from Antioch Church Road, and follow the street around the baseball and softball complex, and come around the road beside the football fieldhouse. Drivers will then turn on the road that leads to the front of the school where a graduation stage will be set up.
The graduate’s two vehicles will stop in front of the stage. The graduate (and only the graduate) will exit the vehicle and walk across the stage to accept their diploma and take a profession photo. The graduate will then return to their vehicle and proceed to the end of the drive where they’ll turn in their cap and gown and pick up the official diploma.
It’s important to note that only cars, trucks, SUVs, and family vans will be allowed in the procession. And no one is allowed to ride in the bed of a truck.
Love how no one can ride in the bed of the truck. This is a rural/country area. Had to be said. Lol.
