City Celebrates Resilience Of Fairfax High Class Of 2020

FAIRFAX, VA — The city of Fairfax is honoring members of the class of 2020 at Fairfax High School as their final semester, disrupted by the coronavirus crisis, near its end. The city of Fairfax Schools, together with the Rotary Club of Fairfax, has put up signs and banners to congratulate the graduating seniors at Fairfax High School.

"Their strength, resilience, and commitment amazes us and we want to spread that to all of Fairfax City!" Fairfax City said on its Facebook page.

Dozens of signs with the names of graduating seniors were placed on Fairfax Boulevard (Route 50) near the Rebel Run entrance to Fairfax High School. The Rotary Club sponsored two city of Fairfax banners — one in Old Town and the other at Rebel Run and Route 50 — to congratulate the high school's class of 2020.

On March 23, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam on Monday ordered K-12 schools, both public and private, to remain closed for the rest of the academic year in an attempt to minimize the spread of the coronavirus.

The city of Fairfax Schools is gathering feedback from students, parents and staff on the best option for graduation ceremonies with the concept of creating an ideal graduation experience without putting parents, students and schools staffers health at risk.

Ayla Wells, the mother of a son who is graduating from Fairfax High School, said it has been "very heartbreaking as a parent to see my son's senior year disappear."

"No sports, no prom, and no graduation," Wells said in an email to Patch. "I think it’s fantastic that the school, senior parents from the All Night Grad Committee, and the city are trying so hard to honor our seniors in whatever small ways they can."

Wells said her family is looking forward to Fairfax High School’s "drive-thru" cap-and-gown event on June 15 and is hopeful there will be an actual graduation ceremony in the fall.

For its part, the Rotary Club has supported the city of Fairfax schools for years, including sponsoring the banners for the class of 2020. "We found this a great way to congratulate the seniors," Paula Kelley, public image chair for the Rotary Club of Fairfax, said in an email to Patch.

Kelley said that Barry Gordon, president-elect of the Rotary Club of Fairfax, led the service organization's effort to honor Fairfax High School's seniors.

The Rotary Club has given scholarships to Fairfax High School seniors for years. This year, the Rotary Club gave five scholarships to Fairfax High School seniors. The organization, which sponsors a high school level Rotary Club called the Interact Club, also awarded a Teacher of the Year award to Anna Weaver, a social studies teacher at Fairfax High School.

"We know that you are strong, to have weathered this current pandemic, and we know you are resilient," Kelley sent to Patch as a message for the graduating seniors. "We wish you the best in your future endeavors."

Patch editor Michael O'Connell assisted in the reporting of this story.