Graduations set without restrictions

Streaming video, other innovations stick around

High school graduations in Northwest Arkansas are returning to normal this spring after two years of covid precautions and modifications.

Commencement at Fayetteville, Rogers, Springdale and Fort Smith will look much like they did in 2019, although covid-19 has brought some innovations, according to school officials. Bentonville’s two high schools are keeping some of the new traditions created in 2020 and 2021, including holding graduation at the high school stadiums.

None of the districts are limiting the number of guests each student can invite this year, but they are all keeping the option of livestreaming video for friends and family who can’t attend in person.

The end of state restrictions on large gatherings and the low number of covid-19 cases have made it possible to return to traditional ceremonies, according to school officials. The Arkansas Department of Health on Monday reported 178 new covid-19 cases in Washington County and 142 new cases in Benton County over the past seven days.

Before the covid-19 pandemic, Bentonville’s two high schools’ commencements took place at University of Arkansas facilities, according to Jennifer Morrow, executive director of secondary education. Graduation was postponed several times in the spring of 2020, and the district ultimately held family walk-through graduations in the high school football stadiums in July, she said.

Last year, the district held more traditional ceremonies in the high school stadiums, and it was such a positive experience the district decided to do it again this year, Morrow said.

Bentonville High School is expected to graduate 727 seniors, and West High School will graduate 502 seniors.

Hosting graduation in the stadium brings every aspect of the event home, Morrow said. People enjoy the feel of having a large crowd celebrating in their home stadium, she said. Bentonville gets to benefit from the economic impact of families who stay in town, eat at local

restaurants and use local facilities for parties, she said.

Hosting events in Bentonville is also more convenient for families, offering a shorter drive, easier parking and fewer issues, such as getting grandparents and family members with limited mobility in and out of the venue, said Leslee Wright, district spokeswoman.

The Springdale School District’s graduations have become much more student-centered as a result of the pandemic, with student speakers replacing keynote speakers and the use of personalized multimedia for each graduate, said district spokeswoman Mary Jordan. Each graduate will have a slide show featuring their story that’s shared prior to the ceremony, and each school will create a senior video to highlight their graduates, she said.

Springdale livestreamed graduation for its four high schools in 2020 and didn’t hold any in-person events, Jordan said. Last year, the district had nine ceremonies instead of four in order to create smaller gatherings.

Nearly 1,500 seniors are set to graduate from the district’s four high schools, according to reports at Tuesday’s School Board meeting.

Fayetteville High School’s graduation was postponed several times in 2020, and the district ultimately held a walk-through event in July, according to Alan Wilbourn, district spokesperson. The district traditionally has one large graduation for students of Fayetteville High School, ALLPS School of Innovation and Fayetteville Virtual Academy, but in 2020 the event was broken into three ceremonies to limit the size of the gathering, he said. Students were divided into groups based on alphabetical order rather than the school they attended.

This year, the district is looking forward to a full graduation with 715 students and 10,000 people celebrating in Bud Walton Arena at 7 p.m. May 19, Wilbourn said. Friends and family members will be required to have tickets, but there’s no limit to how many can attend, he said.

Rogers graduations were delayed several times in 2020, but in the end, many students had to drop in to receive their diplomas individually, said district spokeswoman Ashley Siwiec. In 2021, the district’s three high schools returned to University of Arkansas arenas with masks, recorded music and social distancing in place, she said. The larger high schools also had two ceremonies instead of one to reduce the number of people gathered for the events, she said.

This year, graduations are returning to their usual format at the university facilities with one ceremony per school and live musical performances, she said. About 1,100 students will graduate from Rogers New Technology High, Heritage High and Rogers High schools, she said.

“We look forward to honoring our graduates with all of the fanfare they deserve for their accomplishments,” Siwiec said.

Fort Smith’s Northside and Southside high schools have a tradition of hosting graduation in their respective stadiums, according to spokeswoman Christina Williams. The graduations took place in the stadiums in July 2020 with covid precautions such as masking, along with a limit of two guests per student, according to the district website.

This year, 580 students are set to graduate from Northside, and 374 will graduate from Southside, she said.

In previous years, the inclement weather plan was for ceremonies to be at the University of Arkansas-Fort Smith, Williams said. Now that each school has its own competition arena, ceremonies can be moved indoors in the event of inclement weather, she said. There will be no limit to how many guests can attend the outdoor events, but if they are moved indoors, each student will receive seven tickets, she said.

Bentonville student Brinleigh Dimmit and her father Joel Dimmit said they are excited to see graduation events return to normal.

She said it was upsetting to watch her friends have their graduation traditions ruined in 2020. The contrast between her experience and theirs makes her feel honored to be able to walk in a ceremony this year, she said.

Dimmit said she would have liked to celebrate at Bud Walton Arena, like her friends did in the past. However, her father, who graduated from Bentonville in 2000, said he’s happy to have the ceremony closer to home.

“I really feel for the family members and friends that weren’t allowed to attend graduation during those times,” he said. “I’m excited that things are getting back to normal.”