Sarah, who is the choir president and a member of the theatre department at Ridge Point High School, will not be able to participate in many of her final shows and performances, Tassin said.
“She’s missing all those lasts,” Tassin said. “[Not] having those last banquets for choir and theater, saying goodbye to her friends and celebrating all they’ve accomplished—those are probably her bigger disappointments.”
Fort Bend ISD canceled in-person classes and school activities for the remainder of year April 14, three days before Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced all public and private schools will remain closed for the rest of the year.
Tassin said although it is disappointing as a parent for schools to be closed for the rest of the year, the district has to put health and safety first.
“Above all else, we have to do what we think is best for our students and for teachers and staff and our families,” Tassin said. “So even before the governor made any announcements, we knew it was a step we needed to take and wanted to be transparent about it, so I think it’s the right decision.”
Superintendent Charles Dupre announced in a video to seniors April 13 that graduation ceremonies will not take place in May as originally planned. Instead, the district has booked July 19-21 for the ceremonies, so long as public gatherings are approved by that time.
“I just want you to understand that we are keeping you—the class of 2020—at the forefront of our decision making,” Dupre said.
Tassin said having an in-person graduation ceremony if at all possible is important because high school graduation represents so much.
“We pour our [hearts] and souls into ensuring that these kids have opportunities,” Tassin said. “High school graduation is sort of the manifestation of all those opportunities that are waiting for them because they achieved this milestone.”
For Kristen Sekula, whose daughter, Kendall goes to Ridgemont High School, rescheduling graduation to July may mean they miss out on the ceremony entirely. Kendall, who is going to play collegiate volleyball at Concordia University in California, has to report to school before then.
“Graduation—actually walking across the stage—to be truthfully honest is more for me than her,” said Sekula, who teaches middle school in FBISD.
Sekula said Kendall is more upset about missing prom, the last walk seniors do through the school, the powderpuff football game and other senior activities. At this time, FBISD is leaving proms up to each individual campus to plan and reschedule as appropriate.
“The culture and the traditions at Ridge Point, they’re going to be there for a long time, so a lot of the things that she’s been looking forward to since her older sister was a Ridge Point, she’s known about them for seven years, now she’s not going to be able to do them,” Sekula said.
Tassin said Sarah, a singer/songwriter who will be attending Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, in the fall, wrote a song called “Last Walk” and dedicated it to the class of 2020.
“It’s a beautiful song ... so that’s really her way of getting her feelings out was to put it down in a song,” Tassin said.
Sekula said the abrupt end to the school year may mean Kendall misses out on saying goodbye to many of her teammates who will be attending different schools in the fall.
“I think the friendship part is probably gonna hit the worst, if it hasn’t already hit,” Sekula said.
