All High School Graduation Ceremonies Cancelled In Montco

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, PA — No in-person high school graduation ceremonies will be held in Montgomery County this spring, superintendents and local leaders have agreed, citing the public health risk of further spreading coronavirus.

The decision was a unanimous one between the superintendents of 22 school districts in the county, as well as the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners.

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"There really is no scenario that we can predict by late May or early June where we can allow large groups of people to come together for a gathering like a high school graduation," Montgomery County Commissioner Val Arkoosh said Monday, expressing her regret at the necessity of the decision.

The fate of events in that time frame, late spring into early summer, has long been in question, but it's been far enough into the future that until very recently, some local districts publicly expressed their hopes of holding in-person ceremonies.

While in a best case scenario, "we'll be in a different place, a better place" by then, Arkoosh said, even one or two large gatherings like graduation ceremonies could undo the months of hard work that's been done to stop the spread of the virus.

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In place of in-person ceremonies, superintendents are working with their school boards on ways which they can celebrate student achievement in a creative, socially distant manner. Some districts have already begun working on plans to hold virtual celebrations.

"The superintendents have been amazing," Arkoosh said, praising their swift action to close most schools at the start of the outbreak. "They helped save Montgomery County from looking like New York City."

Schools have been closed since March 13 due to the outbreak, and the remainder of the school year was cancelled shortly thereafter.

Districts in neighboring counties are still mulling the decision. Gov. Wolf has left it up to individual districts, but urged that any ceremonies that take place be done in a socially distant manner.

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