With Fall Graduation Off, But Football Still On, Students Question College Priorities

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Roslyn Clark Artis, president of Benedict College, hosted a graduation ceremony for 180 students in the school’s football stadium in August. She says she would recommend a socially distanced commencement to other colleges and universities — but she acknowledges it’s harder to pull off with thousands of graduates.

AJ Shorter/Benedict College

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AJ Shorter/Benedict College

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Florida State has not announced plans for a spring 2021 commencement. University spokesperson Amy Farnum-Patronis says the cancellation of the in-person ceremony came after a directive from the Florida Board of Governors and the State University System..

«In addition, with FSU moving entirely to remote classes after the Thanksgiving break, having students and family members return to Tallahassee in December poses further health and logistical challenges, Farnum-Patronis says.

«It’s for the community of people behind me

For many students, earning a degree and walking across the stage isn’t only an accomplishment for themselves but also for their families.

Graduating senior Miles Feacher helped organize the Florida State petition.

«My main motivation for creating a petition was because there are a lot of first-generation graduates, and this is like a moment of a lifetime for them, he says. «Hosting football games, but taking this moment away from students seems so crazy.

Feacher is a child of immigrants himself.

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«I’m not walking across the stage to prove a point or even for myself. It’s for the community of people behind me, he says. «I think that’s a shared sentiment for a lot of students, especially students of color and immigrants.

Students like Camilla Williams, also a graduating senior at Florida State. She says her graduation means the world to her parents, who are originally from Jamaica.

«My parents didn’t get to go to college. They didn’t get to experience everything that I’m experiencing, Williams explains. «They worked really hard to make sure my sister and I could go to college to get a good education. This is really for them.

Williams says she was disappointed when Florida State cancelled in-person graduation, but she has come to terms with the fact that she will not be able to walk across the stage to celebrate this major milestone.

«The importance of donning the cap and gown

Some in-person graduations have taken place during the pandemic. In August, Benedict College, a small historically black college in Columbia, S.C., hosted a graduation ceremony in its football stadium. Benedict usually has about 250 to 300 graduates a year, but only 180 students were able to return for the August ceremony.

«It was important for us to do this for our students. They deserved this, explains Roslyn Clark Artis, president of Benedict College.

Graduates stayed 6 feet apart and wore masks, and while families were not invited, the ceremony was live streamed on various platforms for loved ones to watch.

«We wanted to make it really special for the students, Artis says, «so as the students were leaving, the music started and the firework show began. That was a happy surprise for the kids.

Benedict College doesn’t host fall commencements — instead, the school invites fall graduates to the spring ceremony, which it plans to do again this year.

Artis says she would recommend a socially distanced ceremony to other universities and colleges.

«The importance of donning the cap and gown and marching across the stage to receive a diploma, cannot be understated.

But she acknowledges it’s harder to pull off at larger institutions, with thousands of graduating students.

Fall graduations can also be tougher to accomplish in colder climates.

Instead, many colleges are offering make-up ceremonies tentatively scheduled for the spring.

Baylor University has pushed in-person fall graduation to May 2021, and Baylor University senior Kennedy Kinnard says she’ll be there. «This is major to me, she says, «so I’m definitely going to come back.

As a Black student, Kinnard says Baylor wasn’t always the friendliest place, so graduation feels like a double accomplishment.

For other students, coming back six months later isn’t so appealing.

Jayme Henderson at the University of Missouri says, «I think by then the moment would have passed.

Adedayo Akala is an intern on the NPR Business Desk.