Commencement | Photo by Mark Anderson
As Wright State University (WSU) prepares for post-pandemic life, university President Dr. Sue Edwards weighed-in on current and future commencement ceremonies and her excitement to be back on campus.
Commencement during COVID
Currently, commencement is broken up into four smaller ceremonies taking place over the course of one weekend, all of which follow strict health and safety protocols for both those graduating and the limited number of spectators in attendance.
Protocols in place include offering a limited number of guest/family tickets, mask requirements even if fully vaccinated and 6-foot social distancing at all times.
“In a normal circumstance, commencement would involve the entire university,” Edwards said. “It’s a packed house full of visitors, graduates, staff and faculty. It’s a really special moment. We’re trying to keep it just as special for everyone graduating during these tough times, but there are certain safety precautions we have to take.”
At the moment, ceremonies are operating at a maximum of 25% capacity of WSU’s Nutter Center, which dramatically changes the atmosphere of the ceremony.
“We have to limit the total number of tickets sold, and this causes people to be upset. While we cannot have everyone in attendance that typically would be, we are offering a live stream of commencement for those extended family members and friends who aren’t in attendance,” Edwards said.
Return to campus
“I’m so excited to be returning to campus this fall,” Edwards said. “I don’t like the fact that I don’t get to engage with students, faculty and staff around campus at the moment. I can’t express enough how excited I am to have these moments back.”
Edwards said that the availability of vaccines for students is a big factor in future plans to return to some sort of normalcy at the university.
“I’m encouraging folks all the time to do the right thing and get vaccinated so we can keep this process moving along,” Edwards said.
These remarks coincide with the campus-wide communications email sent on March 10, where Edwards announced plans for a return to campus for the fall semester beginning Aug. 23.
“Wright State also plans to host a number of small-group in-person student orientation activities over the summer and will continue to offer in-person campus tours for future students and their families,” WSU said in the campus-wide email.
Edwards said that though future commencement ceremonies will likely have graduates spaced six-feet apart throughout the entirety of the ceremony, those graduating will still receive a sense of normalcy in the recognition of their achievements.
“The plan is that students will be escorted to their chairs because we can’t congregate. The chairs will be six-feet apart, but everything will still be in the spirit of graduation. We must remember to acknowledge all of the hard work these students have put in regardless of circumstance,” Edwards said.
Alumni Opinion
While Edwards has placed an emphasis on the importance of recognizing student achievements in commencement ceremonies at WSU, some former Raiders don’t share the same passion about these ceremonies.
WSU alumnus Christian Henderson, who graduated in 2017, said that commencement wasn’t everything he thought it would be.
“Honestly, the process was kind of dull and dragged out,” Henderson said. “I felt confused shaking the hands of people I had never met or even seen before and looking into the crowd it seemed like everyone was bored. It was just a weird experience for me.”
Henderson also cited the cost of graduation cap and gowns as a factor that caused some annoyance amongst himself and his peers.
“My friends and I who all graduated together never understood why it costs so much for a cap and gown to walk across the stage. After years and years of paying for books, tuition and all of the associated costs of being a college student, it just felt wrong to me. All of that money spent just to walk across that stage. I wasn’t satisfied,” Henderson said.
For information on current and future commencement ceremonies at WSU, click here.
