COLONIE — Colonie High School will hold staggered graduation ceremonies on June 26 outside at the campus.
The district will honor graduates 25 at a time with four tickets issued to each family. The plan is in line with a mandate by Gov. Andrew Cuomo that allows outdoor ceremonies of up to 150 people.
“While we were hoping to be able to offer an opportunity for students to share the moment with a majority of their classmates, we are happy that we will be able to accommodate a ceremony that will allow some students to be with a limited number of friends and more importantly their family members,” said Edward Sim, Board of Education president. “No matter how we celebrate graduation this year, we hope our seniors know how proud we are of all of the accomplishments and their ability to navigate remote instruction for the last several months.”
The staggered ceremonies is at the recommendation of the Colonie Central High School Task Force, which debated options like a virtual ceremony, holding the ceremony at a drive in theater and a drive thru ceremony.
Details of the 2020 Colonie ceremonies will be released in the near future.
Graduation day is the culmination of events held to honor graduates in a year that was disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. On June 4, faculty and staff were on campus to greet seniors who drove by to see their graduation signs lining the drive leading up to the high school.
Across town at Shaker High School, there will be a drive thru ceremony at its campus on June 27.
Click on a photo of the Colonie High senior parade below to view a slideshow of the rest.