This year’s Haines High School seniors are in the early stages of designing a virtual graduation ceremony since the state issued a health mandate closing school facilities through the end of the school year.

The mandate has prompted schools across Alaska to begin planning virtual graduation events.

“So far, we’re thinking (the ceremony) will follow the traditional structure,” senior class president Dylan Chapell said, but nothing’s definite at this point. In past years, graduation has involved speakers, music performances and the handing out of diplomas. 

Speeches and performances are relatively easy to translate into a virtual medium, but diploma distribution presents an interesting challenge. “I’m sure we’ll be mailing the physical diploma, but how do we make that a part of the ceremony or do we leave it out?” Chapell said.

While there are aspects of a traditional graduation that are difficult, if not impossible, to incorporate in a virtual event, the medium also opens up new possibilities. “I think this situation actually will give us the opportunity to think out of the box a little and maybe include some elements that we normally couldn’t pull off,” senior class advisor Lilly Boron said. Boron and senior class advisor Alex Van Wyhe are responsible for gathering ideas from students about the shape of the event.

Ideas brought up at a recent meeting include a Zoom conference with seniors that is recorded and posted on YouTube for the community to view, and a video compiling short speeches delivered by each senior for the occasion, said Joseph Rossman, another senior involved in graduation planning. The two ideas are not mutually exclusive, he said.

The planning has been student-led so far, Van Wyhe said. The senior class asked to meet with school staff because they wanted to make sure that there is a solid plan in place for graduation. 

The meeting resulted in the creation of a committee open to any senior interested in participating. At present, roughly half a dozen students have expressed interest, Van Wyhe said. Staff are encouraging more to join.

Rossman said he thinks all seniors have a responsibility to participate in planning and provide feedback to the administration to make sure the event represents them.

Other stakeholders in the process that will need to be consulted include parents and the community as a whole, Van Wyhe said. 

Haines is the kind of place where community members have a vested interest in graduating seniors even if they are not directly related to the students, Van Wyhe said. “We’ll want to figure out a way to make it a community event as much as possible.”

Both Rossman and Chapell expressed a certain amount of indifference about graduation. “It’s not a big deal to me,” Rossman said. “Personally, it feels like I have graduated already.” The two seniors acknowledged that there are others in their class and others in the community who feel more strongly about the event. Both listed their mothers as prime examples.

It’s important to have a celebration for those that will appreciate it, Rossman said. He said he is disappointed that his relatives from distant parts of the country will be unable to gather for the event, and he’s certain they will want to participate in whatever virtual celebration takes place.

The school administration “has been really open to how the students want it to look,” Van Wyhe said. “So long as it’s doable, we’ll try to make it happen.”

Haines School principal Rene Martin said she plans to begin reaching out to parents this week to gather input, but the most important pieces of feedback will come from seniors.

Both Martin and Haines Borough School District superintendent Roy Getchell emphasized that the planning is still in its early stages. 

“All we know right now is what graduation won’t be—and that is a crowd of people in the gym,” Martin said. She asked for patience as the administration works with students to come up with an innovative solution.

School districts throughout Alaska are waiting for guidance from the state, which they have been told may be released in the coming days, Getchell said. Once this guidance has been issued, graduation preparation can begin in earnest.

At present, the school is still planning to hold the event on May 19.