Schools
Senator Holds Graduation Speech Contest For High School Seniors
Sen. Kaine is holding a video contest for Virginia's high school seniors whose graduation ceremonies were canceled due to the coronavirus.
VIRGINIA — Sen. Tim Kaine is holding an “Everybody’s the Graduation Speaker” video contest for high school seniors whose in-person graduation ceremonies are getting postponed or canceled due to the coronavirus crisis. Kaine is inviting all members of Virginia’s class of 2020 to submit a video of an original speech they would like to give at their graduation ceremony.
Kaine said his office will select the "best of the best" speeches to feature on his Facebook page and website during May and June to celebrate the high school graduates. People around the state and the country will get to hear the "wisdom you have to offer," the senator said Wednesday in a video announcing the contest.
“One of the many groups of Virginians I’ve been thinking about during this challenging time is the graduates of the Class of 2020, many of whom won’t have the graduation experience they’ve been planning for a long time," Kaine said. "My graduation days were among the most memorable days of my life."
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"I feel a sense of loss about that, so I want to do something fun for them and give all high school seniors the chance to be a graduation speaker," he added.
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Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam last month 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. Most school systems in Northern Virginia are conducting online learning.
In most cases, school district policies allow students to improve their grades during distance learning but prevent students' grades from dropping below where they were when schools were shut down.
Kaine said he looks forward to watching the speeches that graduating seniors submit. His office will then post the top speeches "to show the world what the class of 2020 is all about," he said.
Graduating seniors should film videos of speeches that are 10 minutes or less and submit them to gradspeech@kaine.senate.gov by May 15.
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