But due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, graduation for McKinney ISD high school seniors will look a little different this year.
“We care deeply for all of these seniors and we want so badly to honor you to the degree that we can,” Superintendent Rick McDaniel said in a district video posted May 11. “That said, we don’t want to do it at the expense of someone getting sick.”
McKinney High School, McKinney North High School, and McKinney Boyd High School will hold their individual graduation ceremonies May 28, 29 and 30, respectively, according to the May 11 announcement. Each graduate and up to five of their family members will be able to take part in the commencement ceremony.
High school principals will reach out to graduates and their families May 13 with a scheduled time for them to arrive at the stadium, the update said.
In his video, McDaniel explained that families can decorate their vehicles in honor of their graduates and have them on display as they arrive at the stadium. Once they arrive, they will be guided to a check-in station at the southwest tunnel of the Community Event Center.
After families and graduates are checked in, they will be directed to the stadium field, where families will be able to watch as their graduate crosses the stage to receive his or her diploma. The ceremony will be broadcast on the stadium video board to allow everyone at the stadium to witness the events, the district said in its update.
Once diplomas have been received and pictures have been taken, graduates will exit with their families through the southeast tunnel.
Only graduates and family members will be allowed in the stadium, the district said. A driver must also remain in each car during the ceremony, but that person is not included in the limit of five family members plus the graduate.
For family members that are unable to attend the ceremony, the graduation ceremonies will be streamed live online, the update said. Additionally, all regularly scheduled graduation speeches and performances will be prerecorded and edited as part of the graduation video that will be available to the public following the ceremonies.
“We feel like this is a compromise for those that wanted an in-person graduation,” McDaniel said in his video. “This is as close as we can get without filling up the entire stadium and putting people’s health at risk.”
For more details about the upcoming ceremonies, click here.
