We the proud parents and guardians of the graduating Pre-K class from Just Kids, currently at West Middle Island Elementary School, are petitioning for the right to attend an in-person outdoor graduation ceremony for our children.  This is such a precious, important time in their lives, a time to be celebrated, in-person with their parents or guardians, and not through an impartial computer screen.

Covid has already taken its toll on our children’s social and emotional well-being, and they have missed out on several opportunities throughout the school year already because of it.  

Covid restrictions have been lifted more and more by the CDC and NYS. Suffolk County’s Covid-19’s infection rate is at an all time low of 0.56%.  This has motivated our own state Commissioner of Health Dr. Howard Zucker to contact the CDC with plans of removing New York State’s in-school mask mandate, while in the meantime removing the outdoor school mask mandate.  In addition, Governor Cuomo himself has recently allowed outdoor graduations of up to 500 people. 

Our petition for a very small gathering would be no where near that size. These classes are very small in number (some only 9-10 kids), split between an AM session and PM session.  It could be limited to 2 guests per child. If it was held outdoors, everyone could be safely spaced apart per CDC guidelines with ease. Other school districts are doing this now without issue. Our own high school is doing graduation without issue. If certain accommodations can be made for certain circumstances, then it can be made for this. Especially if this can be done in a small, safe and responsible manner, for our youngest, and most vulnerable of students. No Covid Guidelines or safety protocols will be broken by allowing this to happen for these kids.

Please think of these innocent little 4 and 5 year olds that have already been through so much in their short lives. This is all they know of school. Allow their family to be a part of it. These kids want their family there. Allow them to be celebrated. We are so proud of them. Please let us show them at their graduation ceremony. That can not be done properly through a computer screen. Their little hearts and minds deserve it!