OLCHS Makes Tentative Plans For Late Summer Graduation Ceremony

OAK LAWN, IL — When schools announced they would close indefinitely March 13 when the coronavirus pandemic began sweeping into Illinois, little did seniors know that it would be the last time they would attend classes in their respective high school buildings.

Now that in-class instruction has been canceled for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year per orders from Gov. J.B. Pritzker, Oak Lawn Community High School is hoping to hold an in-person graduation ceremony for the Class of 2020 and their families in late July or early August. Commencement was originally set for May 26.

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“We normally hold our graduation ceremony at Saint Xavier University, but that option is not available to us this year, so we plan to hold the event on campus, either on the football field or in the gym,” Dist. 229 Supt. Dr. Michael Riordan said. “Of course, this is assuming that our governmental and public health leaders determine that it is safe for us to assemble in such a large group.”

If an in-person ceremony is not possible, school officials will look at other options, such as prerecorded speeches or a Zoom ceremony. Prom, which was to have taken place on May 8, has also been rescheduled for later in the summer.

“At this point, we haven’t yet determined how this will occur,” Riordan said. “We have rescheduled prom to late July, with the hope that it will be safe to have our students gather together at that time.”

“We are working on a number of ways to recognize, honor, and celebrate our Class of 2020 graduates,” he added.

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