St. Albert-area high school students will take their caps and gowns outdoors this month as they prepare for a second year of grad during a pandemic.
Grade 12 students throughout St. Albert and Sturgeon County are set to take part in outdoor physically-distanced graduation ceremonies in June this year in accordance with pandemic-related health restrictions.
Last year saw area high schools pull together last-minute grad celebrations as the start of the COVID-19 pandemic derailed traditional mass gatherings and dinners.
This year’s grad was better organized since everyone had more time to prepare, said Paul Kane grad presidents Jillian Aisenstat and Ifeoma Iwelu. Still, the constant changes to public-health rules meant their school had to throw out about three grad strategies before settling on a final one.
Iwelu said the pandemic made most of the school’s traditional grad events (such as the garage sale) impossible. The grad committee still managed to hold some themed costume days, including a Formal Friday June 4 where grads got to wear their grad-dinner formal wear to school.
“It was quite beautiful,” Iwelu said.
Most high schools reached by The Gazette said they planned to hold some sort of outdoor grad ceremony this month. (Morinville Community High did not respond by deadline.)
Bellerose will kick off grad season June 12 with its outdoor event, said grad co-ordinator Sue Leighton. Some 325 grads will get to cross a stage one at a time in their cap and gown to receive their certificate. Students will then cross a “field of dreams” filled with white signs upon which grads will write their future plans before receiving an oven-fired pizza, a custom-made cookie, and a gift bag. Grads have also been asked to post pictures of themselves doing the traditional grad-cap-toss at home with their families. A grad video complete with speeches and musical performances will be broadcast online June 13.
Paul Kane will have a drive-in event on June 26 complete with decorations, diplomas, caps and gowns, photos, gift bags, and a stage, said grad co-ordinator Teresa Royea. Some 300 students are eligible to attend.
Sturgeon Composite’s grad event is planned for June 12 indoors at the school’s gym, and is set to be live-streamed for those unable to attend in person, a letter posted to the school’s website said.
St. Albert Catholic High will hold one of the last grads of the season June 28, the school posted on its website. Plans were still in development as of this writing, but the ceremony is scheduled to be a drive-in affair at the Edmonton Expo Centre, with guests listening in through car radio.
