Columbus Independent School District issued the following announcement.
2020 COLUMBUS HS GRADUATION PRESS RELEASE
Columbus ISD is happy to announce that Graduation 2020 will go on as scheduled on May 21 at 8:30 PM. Planning for this event has been all consuming for many individuals to produce this ceremony in the time of COVID-19. When Governor Abbott eased some of the restrictions and allowed open-air graduations, certain requirements had to be met for this event to go on as planned. All persons attending are required to be asymptomatic for the coronavirus and must be temperature screened. This is more problematic in a small school district because of access to materials and personnel. We feel confident employing six thermal screeners (two at each entrance), and by the posting of the personal form so attendees can complete it before arriving. Thus, we can assure an orderly entrance. Social distancing must be maintained not only at the entrance, but also during the ceremony and during the exit.
To ensure social distancing during the ceremony, CISD has restricted guests to five per graduate. This number will allow for the creation of family “pods” of five across the stadium. This arrangement adheres to social distancing guidelines and keeps people adequately distanced. The pods are designated throughout the stadium. The graduation ceremony will be live streamed for family members that cannot attend.
The graduates also have to maintain the six-foot separation, and graduates cannot be handed their diplomas. The diplomas will be arranged so the students can pick up their diploma as they are called forward. Then they will pose for a picture and exit the stage. Microphones and any hardware will be sanitized after each use, or after any person inadvertently touches it. Therefore, bleach wipes and hand sanitizer will be available at all times. Columbus High School met with many districts across Texas while planning this event and determined the greatest probability of breaking the social distancing guidelines could occur when exiting the venue. It was determined by all that the safest way to guarantee a controlled exit was to have families exit as their graduate’s row exits. Once all graduates have received their diplomas, graduates will be released by the rows they are seated in. This was not an easy decision to make, but our greatest desire was to have a graduation program for our students.
Many districts have opted for an impersonal, virtual graduation. CHS students, parents, and staff overwhelmingly wanted an open-air graduation. These decisions were made to honor the wishes of all, and following the guidelines put forth by Governor Abbott. Many districts around Texas will be watching the CISD live stream to help plan their graduations in the coming weeks. All safety measures, as well as everything in the graduation ceremony, have to occur without a graduation practice, as per guidelines. This is a monumental undertaking, which CISD accepts because we value our students, staff, and community.
Graduation 2020 will look different than ever before, but the pride in these student’s accomplishments will not be diminished because of the dedicated work behind the scenes to have this graduation ceremony.
Original source can be found here.
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