Athens State to hold spring, summer graduation Aug. 1

Published 4:00 am Wednesday, July 1, 2020

Students who missed out on a spring graduation ceremony at Athens State University will soon get their chance to take a walk in the spotlight.

Athens State is moving forward with plans to host its summer graduation ceremony Saturday, Aug. 1. Students who graduate this summer and those who would have participated in the spring event that was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic will be honored that day.

According to Chris Latham, director of public relations, marketing and publications, Athens State will be holding three separate graduation ceremonies in the gymnasium that day. There will be one each for the colleges of business (9 a.m.), education (noon) and arts and sciences (3 p.m.).

Latham said the number of graduates per ceremony will be limited to 100, and each graduate will only be allowed to bring two guests in order to maintain social distancing in the gym.

“We are trying to be vigilant and make sure we are doing what is best for the students and their families,” he said.

All graduates and their guests will be required to wear masks during the ceremonies, and the university will have temperature checkers at its entrances as well as signage going over COVID-19 screening questions for everyone wishing to enter.

Latham said all three ceremonies will be livestreamed with links found on university social media accounts for those who either cannot attend or don’t feel comfortable attending.

“We will put out info on how to watch the ceremonies,” he said. “We understand a lot of graduates would rather bring more than two guests, but unfortunately this was the only way we could do it safely and allow the graduates to be here in person.”

Latham said so far there have not been that many graduates register for a ceremony. He said they are being given the option to wait further still and attend a ceremony in the future — perhaps fall or next spring — when they may be able to bring more guests.

“We are trying to be as flexible as possible,” he said.