We, the undersigned, move that the Hillsborough County School District continue prioritizing an in-person, traditional graduation with modifications made for COVID-19 national and state guidelines for safety.

As a senior in high school, I have seen firsthand that this milestone in our high school careers is significant. Graduation is a rite of passage where a senior class feels unified and gets to take pictures, share a few laughs, and wave their final goodbyes as high school officially concludes. This momentous occasion will be our first graduation ceremony in our lives… for some that are choosing not to go the route of higher education, this will be their only graduation ceremony and we should not have to watch it from a screen.

The importance and sentimentality of having a graduation in-person and all together as the Class of 2020 cannot be matched with alternatives such as virtual graduation. Having a traditional graduation ceremony would offer closure to us, as a class, after the chaos and turmoil we have endured in our final months.

Social distancing regulations, if still in place at the time for graduation, can be followed by potentially spacing out seats for graduates, limiting the number of guests per graduate allowed, or holding a ceremony with only graduates present. Choosing not to hold a modified, traditional graduation ceremony would downplay the achievement of our high school diplomas.

A signature on this petition would mean supporting a traditional graduation ceremony - currently planned for July - even with modifications needing to be made for health concerns instead of using an alternative option like a virtual graduation. COVID-19 has taken away our last few months of normalcy inside of our high schools, but you can help us to have our traditional graduation and ceremonial walk across the stage with your signature.