Graduation Ceremonies CAN Happen In NJ

People have been VERY passionate about graduation ceremonies this year. I have friends and family who have graduates this year, so I understand the anger they felt when it was announced that schools had to cancel their graduations, and then were told they couldn't even postpone them to later in the summer, then told they'd have to do "virtual ceremonies", then told "nevermind, maybe you can reschedule"; they were also told that 'wave parades' were not allowed, then quickly told "um sure, go have a wave parade". It's been an aggravating back-and-forth, with no real clear answer from the government. I've seen my friends sharing petitions, and maybe those petitions caught the right eye, because yesterday, Governor Murphy made a big announcement.

Place An Ad In Our Virtual Yearbook

The newest ruling is that people can gather in groups for things like religious services as long as they stay in their car. When asked, Murphy confirmed that the ruling does apply to graduation ceremonies.

There is a slight catch - if cars are going to be closer than six feet, windows and sunroofs must stay closed.

Enter your number to get our free mobile app

I'm not entirely sure how this will work. The issue with graduation ceremonies, from what I gathered, was more with the crowds of family than the student body. It would be simple to just set up the students in chairs that are six feet apart, but when parents are filling the bleachers, you can't keep social distance. If you make everyone stay in their car, could you still have students make the walk up a stage, and accept the diploma from a masked faculty? Just keep the parents and family in the car to cheer and honk?

Obviously there is precedent for Murphy to turn around in a few hours and say "nope, changed my mind", and at this point I'd barely be surprised. But still, for the moment, the Class of 2020 will at least be able to see eachother, parents will be able to cheer and honk, and seniors will have a very unique close to their school days.

You can still honor your grad with our Virtual Yearbook, too!

[via NJ.com]

More from 105.7 the Hawk: