Graduation will go on despite COVID

SEELEY LAKE – With all of the local schools in distance learning and social distancing still required by Governor Steve Bullock in the Phase 1 reopening strategy, plans for graduation ceremonies and end of the year celebrations are slowly coming together for area schools.

According to the Missoula City-County Health Department's graduation ceremony order issued May 8, organizers must submit a Graduation Ceremony Operation Plan that shows how they will meet the minimum requirements and submit it to the Health Department for approval. Organizers must put adequate provisions in place to ensure all staff, volunteers, students and audience members/families can maintain six foot physical distancing and there is adequate provision for cleaning and sanitation. Under no circumstances can the ceremony exceed 250 people.

The Health Department highly recommends face coverings for staff, volunteers, students and attendees. They also encourage the use of remote and live streaming options to allow the community and high-risk family and friends of the graduates to watch.

Seeley Lake Elementary will not be holding an in-person graduation for eighth graders. Banners of each of the eighth graders will be hung on the fence by the school prior to graduation. A slideshow of the eighth grade class will be posted to the SLE website (sleonline.org) on graduation day June 2. This will include awards for each student from the staff. Certificates of completion will be mailed to the students.

Sunset School will be holding an "End of the Year Celebration COVID-style" where they will promote their kindergartner Sophie Mendenhall. This is for immediate families only.

Swan Valley School will be holding a graduation ceremony for their four eighth grade graduates June 2. The ceremony is by invite only and is not open to the public. Each eighth grader is allowed to invite nine guests. The staff and the board chair will also be in attendance.

Principal Ralph King said he really wanted to see the students have a ceremony, "but it needs to be appropriate." While a change from the normal, he feels under the circumstances it is a good compromise.

MCPS Superintendent Rob Watson discussed the options for high school seniors during an information session with the MCPS Board meeting May 12. He started off the discussion by saying Seeley-Swan High School and Willard School's graduations will look different because they only have 19 and 65 graduates respectively.

Watson told the MCPS board that while the Health Department has not required face masks, MCPS will supply face masks for the students and they are encouraging attendees to bring their own. Disposable face masks will be provided for guests who do not bring one.

Watson explained that the ceremony is for the graduates and their guests but they needed to ensure safety. When he spoke with the Health Department Officer Ellen Leahy, he said she was nervous about putting too many restrictions that would cause more issues with social distancing if there were a bottleneck entering the venue while compliance was checked.

"She was more in favor of having some basic requirements but social distancing was a huge one," Watson told the board after being asked why the Health Department did not require face masks. "Getting people into the venue and staggering them to get them in safely was more important to her than requiring things like temperature checks or face masks. Face masks are definitely encouraged by the Health Department and it is encouraged by us. "

SSHS formalized their graduation plans following the MCPS Board meeting. The seniors will have a closed ceremony Sunday, May 31 at 1 p.m. in the SSHS Helen and C.B. Rich Gymnasium. Each graduate is allowed to invite five guests. Even with students, five guests per graduate and staff they will not reach the 250 maximum. However, to ensure social distancing within the gymnasium the administration agreed this was the maximum to allow six feet distancing between families.

"We will be able to keep the great tradition of students presenting roses to the mothers and the slide show," wrote SSHS Principal Kellen Palmer in an email. "The event will be live-streamed by MCAT and other traditional elements such as speeches will be shared online."

The senior parents are working on a parade of graduates following the ceremony. This will allow the community to celebrate the graduates and wish them well in their next adventure in life. Look for more details about the route and times in next week's Pathfinder.

While the MCPS Board did not vote on what the graduation ceremonies would look like for Big Sky, Hellgate and Sentinel High Schools, Watson shared his thoughts. Since they all have graduating classes that are around 250 students or more, he proposed splitting the classes and doing multiple ceremonies in the Adams Center. The ceremonies would be held June 4 – 6 and each graduate could invite two guests. These details will be finalized soon.