Trusteeship - May/June 2020 - 42

TAKEAWAYS
■ Communicate decisions to

students and families as
early as possible.
■ Involve students in the

decision making about what
a virtual ceremony would
look like.
■ Consider sending physical

packages so students have
access to their caps and
gowns for celebrations at
home.

42 TRUSTEESHIP MAY. JUN. 2020

She made a video sharing the announcement with the senior class. They now plan
to hold the virtual ceremony on the original
date on May 16, and then invite the seniors
to walk in Midland's commencement ceremony in December 2020.
Senior leadership at West Virginia University (WVU) has made a similar choice.
The university announced on March 25
that it will hold its virtual graduation on
May 16 and has postponed its traditional
ceremony until December 19.
"[Commencement] is one of my favorite
times of our academic year, and I cannot
imagine not having that moment to share
with our students," said President E. Gordon Gee. "At the same time, we had to
balance the very real and ever-evolving
situation with the pandemic. The safety
of our campus community is our first and
foremost priority."
At Portland State University, a university-wide committee made the recommendation to cancel the in-person graduation.
Chuck Knepfle, vice president for enrollment management, said that students were
understandably disappointed and frustrated, but all seemed to understand why
the gathering was cancelled.
While many institutions organize
commencement twice a year, others like
Portland State only hold the graduation
ceremony in the spring. "It is important to
recognize the hard work of our students as
close as possible to when they earn their
degree," Kenpfle said. "We have students
who have already been waiting six or nine
months to have their moment."
Board Chair Gregory Hinckley said that
commence has particular significance for
students attending public institutions like
Portland State because of the large number
of first-generation students and others who
work full-time. "The achievement of such
students deserves great ceremony and public praise," he said. "But this year it will not
be, because in the circumstances it cannot
be, except in the hearts of family, friends
and the many admirers of these graduates."

Figuring Out the Details
In the meantime, institutions are looking
at virtual events to offer some recognition
to graduates as they wrap up their senior
year from afar. "We wanted to celebrate our
graduates on the day that they should have
been walking across the stage," Gee said.
Crawford shared a similar sentiment.
"We needed to make the best and most
appropriate decision in keeping with
Miami's culture. Miami is highly student-focused, and it was vital that we
acknowledge the official date of commencement," he said. "Therefore, we have
committed to recognizing our students
remotely on that day to celebrate their
achievements."
Horner said they are still figuring out
the details for Midland's virtual commencement. They might do a live ceremony where she and the provost might
dress in their regalia and read names, and
then feature a photo of each student. "Our
vision there was that families could gather
around a computer or their tablet and get
the ceremony live and hear their name
called," she said.
The other option is to record a video
that is available on demand. The university is also sending out gift packages to all
seniors that will contain alumni t-shirts,
caps and gowns, and cords so they can
celebrate at home. Midland provides iPads
to all of its students, so Horner added that
she's confident that students will have
access to the technology they need to participate in the virtual ceremony.
WVU's university relations team will
be working with a third-party vendor,
StageClip, to produce the virtual ceremony,
which will include pre-recorded remarks
from our president and provost. Graduates
will be able to submit short videos, photos,
or messages in advance that will be formatted into individual "clips" and available for
them to easily share with friends and family
via email and social media after the virtual
ceremony.
Miami University has engaged its

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