Butte College commencement goes virtual

OROVILLE » Butte College announced Tuesday that its commencement ceremony would be held virtually.

The virtual commencement ceremony will become available for viewers to watch at 6:30 p.m. Friday, May 28. The ceremony will remain accessible for viewers for one year.

“I wish our circumstances were such that we could have a traditional face-to-face commencement ceremony to honor this important milestone,” said Butte College President Samia Yaqub in a release. “Unfortunately, that is not the case. The on-going risks presented by the COVID-19 pandemic require that we continue to socially distance and refrain from mass gatherings. Keeping you and your loved ones safe and healthy is of the utmost importance.”

The virtual ceremony will include various speakers and graduates will have an opportunity to view their customized virtual commencement slide as their name is announced. Slides will contain the graduate’s name, degree earned, a comment or quote provided as well as photographs uploaded by each individual graduate.

Slides will be available for students to downloaded, saved and shared if desired, according to the Butte College commencement webpage.

Diplomas for spring and summer graduates will be mailed 8 to 12 weeks after the conclusion of the graduate’s term.

Yaqub concluded the President’s Message, which can be seen on the commencement webpage, by saying: “While we cannot physically come together, we will still celebrate your achievements. We have a fantastic team working tirelessly to make sure your virtual commencement will be meaningful and fun for you and your family and friends. I look forward to seeing you at our virtual commencement on May 28, 2021.”

Butte College and its Student Speaker Selection Committee are currently seeking graduates and graduate candidates to try out to speak at commencement. Speakers, who will be allotted three to four minutes to speak, may submit their proposed speech to commencement@butte.edu by midnight on April 25. Videotaping of speeches will occur at Butte College on May 10.

The 2020 virtual commencement is still viewable and can be seen at https:// redirect.is/w019i7n.

BUTTE COLLEGE YOUTUBE Butte College President and Superintendent Samia Yaqub speaks to Butte College graduates during the spring 2020virtual commencement ceremony. Butte College announced Tuesday that the 2021 commencement ceremonies will be once again be held virtually due to COVID-19restrictions.