School District 25 to hold graduation processions for the Class of 2020

POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI/KIDK) - Seniors of the Pocatello/Chubbuck School District won’t be walking during graduation this year, they’ll be rolling.

Due to social distancing guidelines, a traditional graduation is out of the question. Instead, School District 25 will be holding a graduation procession. 

"It’s heartbreaking," Courtney Fisher, communications director for the district, said. "It’s heartbreaking for the seniors, it’s heartbreaking for their teachers, it’s heartbreaking for their parents and families."

For the nearly 1,000 seniors of the four district high schools, graduation will be a time to remember. Not just because it’s the culmination of all their hard work, but because a graduation procession will be so different than what they expected. 

The drive-by style graduations will be held on the originally scheduled dates and run on separate routes for each school. 

"There will be a designed spot where they drive by. We’ll have a PA system, the graduate will hear their name read over that PA and received their diploma cover," Fisher explained. 

The district had been working with seniors to find out what they wanted to see this year. After meeting with student representatives on Wednesday, the district released its plan. 

One thing that stood out was that students felt it was important to have a diploma cover handed to them. 

Highland High School Senior Class President Sage Hirshchi said she believes it’s just part of the expectation.

"That’s kind of what you build up to your whole high school is getting that diploma handed to you and that’s what everyone else said they wanted," she said. 

When the plan was announced, not everyone was satisfied, but Hirschi said she and other representatives had most of their desires met. 

"I know a lot of people are upset about how it’s just going to be a parade and we’re not gonna get a huge celebration and whatever, but they’ve worked very, very hard on it and how they could make it great for seniors and make it just as good as it would have been," she said.  

Fisher said she's excited about all the opportunities to customize and personalize the experience for graduates that this type of event will allow.

"Because we're saving on the fees for Holt Arena and the flowers and the stage and the jumbotron, we're able to redirect those funds and do some really cool personalized elements," she said.

Participants are expected to stay in their vehicles and there will be a recommend two-car limit per graduate, according to the release. 

Fisher says students can decorate their cars and encourages them to wear their caps and gowns. 

"It is definitely going to be memorable and we just hope people approach it with a frame of mind that this is an opportunity for them to personalize it for their families, individualize it and make the most of it and make it a really special memory," Fisher said. 

Fisher says final graduation information, including the individual routes, will be released soon.