Items

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  2020-03-12

  Class of 2020

  On March 12th, 2020, the Community College of Allegheny County emailed out a letter in response to the COVID - 19 global pandemic. The college had suspended credited classes for five days until faculty and administration had figured out how to stop the spread of COVID – 19 by having a smooth transition from in-person learning to online learning. I was aware that COVID - 19 was starting to become a large problem in the U.S. and other countries, but I did not think that we were at the magnitude that we would need to go online learning. Nonetheless, I was fine with it. I would rather be safe than sorry because I wasn’t sure of the seriousness of the virus and the online learning period was only supposed to last from March 18th to April 19th. And then on April 1st, 2020, the whole state of Pennsylvania had gone on lockdown for COVID – 19, I had then selfishly started to become worried about what the future would hold for me. I was in the last year of my two-year degree program and extremely excited that I was finally eligible to graduate and walk across the stage and graduate with my family cheering for me like every other graduating class before me. I figured there would have to be some type of celebration for the graduating class because, before the year 2020, I and many other students had never even imagined what alternate graduation would look like or how it would even work. I think I and any other student who was a part of the graduating class of 2020 in hindsight are glad that we didn’t have the traditional graduation because we did celebrate our achievements and kept our family and friends safe while doing it.
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  2020-06-05

  Graduation Parade 2020

  High School graduation 2020 was one for the books for sure. My daughter was a part of the class that had to deal with all of the concerns about what graduation would look like. Our high school decided to have a graduation parade. For my daughter, this was the best possible way to have a graduation. My daughter, dressed in her graduation regalia and her brother, two sisters, and myself crammed into my little car and in a procession, joined a hundred other cars for Lassen High's graduation parade. We decorated the car and honked the horn as we drove by community members lined up on the streets. Teachers were stationed all along the parade route and waved at the students, they had not seen in months. The enthusiasm was contagious. Having a girl that has social anxiety, for her, sitting by mom in the car was the best feeling. As she got out of the car to walk up the stage, she was able to thank the school counselor who invested hours to help her graduate. It was certainly a graduation to remember, and hands down, my favorite graduation to attend.
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  2020-07-18

  A Socially Distant Graduation

  As I sat in my cap and gown, I thought back to my last actual school day. I had spent the day stressing about a statistics test, instead of enjoying time with my friends or thanking my teachers. When the announcement came that we would not return to school, I wished I could redo that day. Yet, I quickly realized that that day, like so many that followed, was a reminder not to take anything for granted and remember what is important. So as I sat with my classmates, I was not sad about the celebrations or goodbyes I missed; I was simply grateful.
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  2020-05-19

  Princeton High School Lights on for Seniors Parade

  Flyer distributed by the Parents of Princeton High School’s Class of 2020 announcing a “Lights on for Seniors” Parade on 05/22/2020. This event was not associated with the local school district and was completely created and executed by parent volunteers, displaying the efforts of parents to honor their children and celebrate their achievements despite COVID-19 bringing an early end to their senior year.
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  2020-05-22

  The Masked Graduate

  A photo of my son before his reimagined graduation ceremony at Cactus Shadows High School. Masks were required of all students and their 2 guests.