Beaufort County seniors protest graduation plans in silent march. Here’s what they ask
As the group of students wearing caps and gowns walked quietly past restaurant customers eating at patio tables in downtown Beaufort Saturday, some of the diners applauded for the Beaufort County class of 2020.
If those people can eat safely outside, a parent later told the group, students can safely participate in an outdoor graduation ceremony.
The march by dozens of high school students and parents pushing for a more traditional in-person graduation ceremony amid coronavirus fears attempted to show how such an event might be done safely in the county.
“I think we all deserve a proper celebration,” Beaufort High School senior Rachelle Martz said. “Everyone before us has had a proper celebration. I understand we are in the middle of a pandemic, but if 70 other school districts in the state can do this, then so can we.”
The group walked a loop around Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park, some holding signs and most heeding organizers’ calls for quiet dissent while protesting school officials’ plan for pre-recorded videos of seniors walking across the stage.
“We support you in every way possible,” said Jamie Bodie, the father of a May River High School senior and two other May River students. “We will fight tooth and nail for you.”
Protest organizers asked for a silent and respectful event with proper distancing and masks to show school district officials that participants were capable of following guidelines.
“We do not want to disturb anyone, only bring awareness to our predicament,” Beaufort High School senior Heather Butler wrote in a Facebook group advocating for an in-person graduation. “We must show that we are respectful and are willing to work with the board but we want them to hear us out.”
Parents and seniors have asked the school district to consider an outdoor event in a high school stadium streamed live online and have considered organizing private graduation events in large outdoor venues.
Schools superintendent Frank Rodriguez said he consulted with state health officials and school principals in deciding on virtual graduations. Seniors will be filmed walking across the stage and allowed to bring up to four guests in ceremonies that will be posted to YouTube on graduation day in June.
Graduates will receive diplomas at drive-through events at their schools.
Rodriguez has said he would be open to an in-person ceremony later in the year but that the virtual plan is the safer alternative now.
This story was originally published May 16, 2020 at 3:03 PM.
