Sonoma State University announced on Feb. 16 that the University plans on celebrating the graduating Classes of 2020 and 2021 with a hybrid drive-thru and virtual ceremony. 

The ceremonies will be taking place on the weekend of May 15 – 16, for the Class of 2020, and the weekend of May 22 – 23, for the class of 2021. 

The commencement will be a mixture of a drive-thru ceremony and a virtual ceremony for those who cannot be there in person. There will also be an opportunity for participants to walk across a stage in their regalia and receive their diploma cover in person. 

In that email sent out to the graduating classes, Vice President for University Advancement Co-Chair and Commencement Logistics Committee member Mario A. Perez along with Caroline Neyman, Operations Director, Green Music Center Co-Chair and fellow Commencement Logistics Committee member, explained the reasoning for trying a hybrid drive-thru commencement ceremony instead of an all virtual one. 

“After careful consideration of current public health guidance, the Commencement Logistics Committee thinks the best format for this important celebration is a hybrid drive-thru ceremony. While current Sonoma County public health data indicates that large in-person gatherings such as commencement will not yet be feasible by May, a hybrid drive-thru format will provide more of a community feel than a solely virtual format”, the email read.    

For some students, graduation is an important milestone in their life that marks the ending of one chapter and the beginning of a new one. It is an achievement that is often celebrated with parties, friends and family, caps and gowns, and lots of pictures. However, as the world tries to navigate a global pandemic, graduation is looking very different for the Classes of 2020 and 2021. 

While many universities, like SSU, are trying to maintain a sense of community and celebrate the students graduating, COVID-19 safety and restrictions have left them with very few options. 

In efforts to keep their communities safe, many universities have resorted to virtual ceremonies.     

SSU’s idea of a drive-thru ceremony gives students an opportunity to walk the stage and receive their diplomas while still adhering to COVID guidelines. 

When talking to a variety of students who plan on graduating in the Spring of 2021 and students who recently graduated in Fall 2020, the students on track to graduate in the Spring seemed more interested in the idea than the students who already graduated. 

George Condit, a 24-year-old Computer Science major at SSU who is planning on graduating in the spring said, “It’s definitely an interesting idea. I appreciate the ingenuity and the desire to safely give students the opportunity to graduate nearly in-person. It’s such an important thing to be able to cross that threshold, figuratively and literally, and the last year and a half of struggles for SSU students definitely make that opportunity all the more important.”

Sonoma State is one of the first universities to announce their plan to try this new hybrid drive-thru commencement. 

Alondra Lona, a 23-year-old Spanish and Computer Science major also set to graduate in the spring wrote in a text message, “I don’t think it’s that bad of an idea! I know they are trying to do what is safe and works best. Ideally I would have loved to have an actual graduation, but this is better than just being virtual. But also I know that not everyone lives in Sonoma County to attend.” 

However, some students who recently graduated are less enthusiastic about the idea, as that chapter of their life has already seemed to come to a close, or at least a stand still.  

21-year-old Avery Engelstad, an English Literature major who recently graduated in the Fall said, “I understand that they want to make it special for those of us who have graduated but it just feels like a bigger reminder of how much time of my college years I’d lost.” 

Engelstad says the challenges of online classes motivated her to graduate early but she was unable to celebrate her success with the people important to her. 

“I pretty much just called my mom”, she wrote when asked how she celebrated, “She wants to go and do something fun eventually but with COVID there isn’t a ton to even do and I can’t even see all my family right now so we just have to wait.” 

Kate Smale, a 22-year-old Technical Theater major who also graduated in the Fall shares a similar sentiment, “It’s cool to try and celebrate, it’s just a weird time so I think it’s hard to get excited about anything.” 

When asked if they had any ideas for ways universities could make COVID graduations a bit more exciting, some students suggested virtual department or major-specific celebrations as a final way to connect with friends and professors within their program. Other students expressed that part of the graduation experience is taking photos on campus and suggested that universities set up little photo areas around their campuses with little props where students and their families can go take pictures and feel a bit more involved.   

Despite the continuous struggles and challenges posed everyday by the pandemic, many students are looking forward to the opportunity to safely celebrate their graduation beyond a computer screen.