HS Graduation - NOT

[mom2rtk]

Same here, or mostly.. Proms are in June, and in October is the diploma ceremony.. It is done at Church, and my son's was this past October.. 5 hours long .. I thought I would pass out at one point.. We went out for a nice family dinner after..

5 hours?

At least they keep ours short and sweet. The auditorium in town holds most of al the graduations on this side of the metro area. So every weekend in May is fully booked. They run them every 3 hours, and that includes arrival, ceremony and clearing out of all traffic. The ceremony itself is just under an hour.

 

[disneychrista]

I don't understand how it is tacky to attend the reception but not the ceremony. When couples INVITE people to the reception but not the ceremony.

 

[DopeyDame]

What I tell our Seniors the day of graduation is this:

Today, believe it or not, is NOT about you. You've had all the events over the last weeks leading up to graduation, you've had college acceptance, you have all the stuff this summer leading up to going to college. But today is not YOUR day.

Today is about your parents. It's about their baby achieving a huge milestone and growing up. It's about their chance to say some goodbyes to the baby you once were, the one they can still see in your eyes. It's their chance to hear your name announced, to see you stand in the spotlight and receive that diploma, and beam with pride.

So you're doing today for THEM, as a small thank you for al they've given up to allow you to achieve this milestone. And I want you to stand tall, to give them that photograph of you becoming an adult.

And, in some small measure, it's also for your classmates and your teachers. This is the last time you guys will EVER be together as a class. Your opting out takes away from that...and, yes, we will know. No matter how your high school years went, there are teachers who taught you and will mourn your absence. There are kids who will mourn your absence, whether or not you know their names, they'll notice. You are part of this class; without you, the whole class isn't celebrating this milestone.

I realize there are some exceptions-- say, kids who have been bullied and can't wait for this part of their life to end. And I'm not really talking about them... I'm talking about the typical whine that graduation is long and boring. Yep, it is. Every single year. But those minutes when the entire class (all 600 of them) processes in, and that moment when YOU are standing in the spotlight making mom and dad proud-- those minutes are time you give back to others.

OP, do what's right for your family of course. But I'm sincerely hoping that every one of the 600 or so of our current Seniors attends the graduation ceremony in June.

I have two preschoolers, and picturing their high school teacher saying this to them brought tears to my eyes. I hope all your students listen to you an heed yr advice

 

[aprilgail2]

I don't understand how it is tacky to attend the reception but not the ceremony. When couples INVITE people to the reception but not the ceremony.

Exactly- ceremony is open to anyone that wants to go to the church- reception you are invited to. As teens we would sometimes stop in a local church if we saw a wedding going on and sit in the back and watch - dont need an invitation for that!

 

[mommasita]

Exactly- ceremony is open to anyone that wants to go to the church- reception you are invited to. As teens we would sometimes stop in a local church if we saw a wedding going on and sit in the back and watch - dont need an invitation for that!

Agreed..

I also think the use of the word "tacky" is ridiculous..

There are all types of parties, weddings, etc.. Around here they are all open bar, and I remember going to one where it wasn't.. It was "different", but not tacky to me.... Just because people do things differently, that isn't tacky, but that is my opinion..

 

[mumto3girls]

This is the tackiest thing ever. Really.

In my circle of friends and family most people only go to the weddings of close family and friends. Otherwise you just go to the reception.

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

Today, believe it or not, is NOT about you. You've had all the events over the last weeks leading up to graduation, you've had college acceptance, you have all the stuff this summer leading up to going to college. But today is not YOUR day.
Today is about your parents. It's about their baby achieving a huge milestone and growing up. It's about their chance to say some goodbyes to the baby you once were, the one they can still see in your eyes. It's their chance to hear your name announced, to see you stand in the spotlight and receive that diploma, and beam with pride.

I don't need a boring 3 hour ceremony complete with all the stuffed shirts, the vast majority of which can't hold my kid's jock strap intellectually prattling on for far too long to come to grips with the fact my kids have grown up or to say good bye to them or to be proud for them. Shoot. If my kids teachers actually got to say anything or the kids other than the one that gamed the gpa system the best got to speak well, I'm sure it would be far more worthwhile. And the walk across the stage and announcement of names lasts for all of about 20 seconds. If my kids want to go and want me to go, I'll go for them. But I certainly don't need to go for me.

 

[Pembo]

OP here - the more I read on this thread, the less I feel the need for my ds to go. We've always said that graduation isn't that big of a deal. We *expected* him to graduate. In our lives, it is a given that our kids will graduate. It is just another part of their growing up.

I'm proud of the son we've raised that can voice his opinion with valid reasoning and feel that he can talk to us about his choices. Will *I* miss being part of the ritual? Maybe. Then again, it wasn't a big deal for me to be at my own graduations. We tend to not do things just because everyone else does.

The grad ceremony isn't about me and it isn't about my son. It is a ritual and we are choosing not to participate. And that is okay.

 

[mommasita]

OP here - the more I read on this thread, the less I feel the need for my ds to go. We've always said that graduation isn't that big of a deal. We *expected* him to graduate. In our lives, it is a given that our kids will graduate. It is just another part of their growing up.

I'm proud of the son we've raised that can voice his opinion with valid reasoning and feel that he can talk to us about his choices. Will *I* miss being part of the ritual? Maybe. Then again, it wasn't a big deal for me to be at my own graduations. We tend to not do things just because everyone else does.

The grad ceremony isn't about me and it isn't about my son. It is a ritual and we are choosing not to participate. And that is okay.

I absolute agree! So long as you are ok with it, then so be it.......

 

[schrammalot]

At my high school (private, prep school), if you didn't walk, you didn't graduate. Unless you had a legitimate medical problem, you had to walk.

 

[Missy1961]

OP here - the more I read on this thread, the less I feel the need for my ds to go. We've always said that graduation isn't that big of a deal. We *expected* him to graduate. In our lives, it is a given that our kids will graduate. It is just another part of their growing up.

I'm proud of the son we've raised that can voice his opinion with valid reasoning and feel that he can talk to us about his choices. Will *I* miss being part of the ritual? Maybe. Then again, it wasn't a big deal for me to be at my own graduations. We tend to not do things just because everyone else does.

The grad ceremony isn't about me and it isn't about my son. It is a ritual and we are choosing not to participate. And that is okay.

Your opinion and your son's are the only ones that matter. Do what works best for you.

 

[luvsJack]

I don't need a boring 3 hour ceremony complete with all the stuffed shirts, the vast majority of which can't hold my kid's jock strap intellectually prattling on for far too long to come to grips with the fact my kids have grown up or to say good bye to them or to be proud for them. Shoot. If my kids teachers actually got to say anything or the kids other than the one that gamed the gpa system the best got to speak well, I'm sure it would be far more worthwhile. And the walk across the stage and announcement of names lasts for all of about 20 seconds. If my kids want to go and want me to go, I'll go for them. But I certainly don't need to go for me.

Wow, that is really a "nice" way to look at the other students, the teachers and the administration? So, your kid is really all that?




OP, the decision is between you and your son. If you do not feel that you or he will regret, you think he came to this decision for the right reasons and all are good with it, let him skip it.

I do think the student needs to think of more than just themselves. And they need to think about whether in another year they will wish they had gone to see some of their classmates one more time. But, that doesn't mean they are all wrong for choosing not to go.

 

[LiveYourLife]

OP here - the more I read on this thread, the less I feel the need for my ds to go. We've always said that graduation isn't that big of a deal. We *expected* him to graduate. In our lives, it is a given that our kids will graduate. It is just another part of their growing up.

I'm proud of the son we've raised that can voice his opinion with valid reasoning and feel that he can talk to us about his choices. Will *I* miss being part of the ritual? Maybe. Then again, it wasn't a big deal for me to be at my own graduations. We tend to not do things just because everyone else does.

The grad ceremony isn't about me and it isn't about my son. It is a ritual and we are choosing not to participate. And that is okay.

Good for you Pembo. I agree with your sentiments.

CONGRATULATIONS to your Graduate, you must be so proud (and should be)! Best of luck to him on his future educational endeavors