In an email sent to students, parents and faculty, Clarke Central High School Principal Marie Yuran announced that the CCHS graduation ceremony will be held Friday, May 18. Senior Phineas Alexander understands that problems may arise with the date, but also sees a positive. “I think changing the dates of graduation within a semester of graduation would be really inconvenient to a lot of people,” Alexander said. “(But), it works better for me personally, because I have to go to the Cedar (Shoals High School) graduation, too, and it helps me that they’re on different days. And I think it works better for graduation parties, too, so I definitely don’t have any complaints about that.” Graphic by Lucia Bermudez
The 2018 Clarke Central High School graduation ceremony will be held on Friday, May 18 at 7 p.m. at the Stegeman Coliseum.
Unlike in previous years, Clarke Central High School’s 2018 graduation ceremony will be held on Friday, May 18 at 7 p.m., and not a Saturday.
Due to scheduling conflicts with Stegeman Coliseum and surrounding districts, CCHS and Cedar Shoals High School parents were invited to vote on their preference of the alternatives — having a Friday or a Sunday ceremony.
“Cedar Shoals parents submitted 77 responses and a 54.5 percent majority requested Sunday (May 20). Clarke Central parents submitted 113 responses and a 65.5 percent majority requested a Friday (May 18),” CCHS Principal Marie Yuran said in an email to CCHS students, parents and faculty.
CSHS and Hilsman Middle School parent Bridget Dougherty Ratajczak liked the chance to vote on the potential date and also feels that having different dates could benefit both high schools.
“I appreciate the opportunity to give input. Also, I kind of like having graduation on two different dates for CCSD schools,” Ratajczak said. “That way kids who are friends can attend each other’s ceremonies and parties. That was a hassle and conflict when my oldest graduated in 2015.”
While Ratajczak sees potential benefits, for senior Kenia Garcia, a Friday ceremony could potentially cause problems for her family.
“I’m not really sure how I feel about it because I don’t know if my family’s gonna come over for graduation,” Garcia said. “(The date change could be a problem) because my family’s more available on Saturday.”
In the same email, Yuran noted that more details, including information about dress rehearsals, “will be forthcoming.”
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