Seniors: A Graduation Ceremony is in Reach, And It’s Ours to Lose

You have all seen the iLearn pop-ups, the emails and the messages from class presidents. You came home from class to see Frankie the Fox adhered to your door, proudly boasting a “vaccinated” sticker. The college has unleashed a full-fledged campaign to get shots in the arms of students. And while you’ve undoubtedly seen the signs, you may not yet see the urgency and the gravity:

Just over 40% of the seniors reported a first dose of the vaccine. 

That’s out of a class of approximately 1200. 

We applaud our fellow seniors who are in the vaccination process, but 40% is not enough. After the past year –– the lost lives, the daily disappointments, the pauses –– 40% won’t be enough for the commencement ceremonies we deserve and that are, finally, in reach. 

The New York State Department of Health updated its guidance for graduation celebrations on April 12, going into effect on May 1. Large-scale, outdoor venues –– say, for example, the Marist green –– can be filled up to 20% capacity. This could potentially mean graduating as a class, watching our friends walk across that stage and even having our parents in attendance. 

But, there’s a catch –– and that’s vaccinations. 

For the outdoor events we’ve just described, everyone in attendance must provide proof of immunization or a recent COVID-19 test taken within 72 hours of the event. In addition, the college must have its plan for commencement approved by the county health department or local public health authority. Long story short: a graduation ceremony becomes much more feasible with widespread vaccinations in the Marist community. 

There’s reason to hope, but it’s also easy to feel disillusioned. We get it. Many aspects of the senior year we thought we had in front of us were unceremoniously stripped away last year: championships, concerts, spring break trips and nights out with friends. For weeks, we lost access to in-person classes, too. The weight of these “what-ifs” can make hoping for the future feel foreign and even pointless. 

Imagining the senior year we could have had does no one any good. This was not the year we hoped for, but we can have a graduation ceremony that honors what we did have and what we did accomplish, in spite of every obstacle. It is possible, and it’s in our hands. 

Administrators, Student Activities, club leaders and even student-run social media accounts have stepped up to help students find vaccination clinics and navigate appointments. Tomorrow, April 20, the college will hold its last on-campus clinic at 51 Fulton Street. As of this afternoon, appointments were still available. At the request of the college, tomorrow’s clinic will administer Pfizer vaccines instead of Moderna, as students who receive their first dose on April 20 and be fully vaccinated on May 25, early in Senior Week. 

What Senior Week, Commencement or any other end-of-year festivities will look like remains to be seen, but we know this much: with more vaccinations come more opportunities. Upload your vaccination cards (after your first dose and again after your second) at marist.medicatconnect.com. Ask for help if you need it. Don’t give up hope.