PUHSD announces virtual graduation; protest planned

There won't be any scenes like this from 2017 on June 5, the original date for Paloma Valley High's graduation ceremony. File photo

By Doug Spoon, Editor

Grant Bennett knew the public backlash that would result from a decision he said no one in the administration of Perris Union High School District wanted to make.

“This is not what we wanted to do,” said Bennett, superintendent of PUHSD. “I feel horrible for the seniors.”

The district’s announcement on Friday that it would hold virtual graduation rather than the traditional ceremonies has been met with hundreds of angry responses from parents on social media and a protest planned by students for Thursday. Bennett said he understands the frustration of parents and students, but that district officials believed they had no other choice in light of restrictions on large gatherings because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“You have to look at the phases the governor established,” Bennett said, referring to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s plan for re-opening businesses and lifting other restrictions. “We’re still in phase 1. School gatherings like this fall under phase 4. How can you fill a stadium full of parents and grandparents who would be susceptible to the virus?”

The virtual graduation ceremonies will be accessible through a link on the district website the same day the actual ceremonies would’ve been held in the first week of June, Bennett said. Speakers, including the class valedictorian and salutatorian, will pre-record their speeches for inclusion in a video in which each student’s senior portrait will be shown as their name is read.

Bennett acknowledged that critics will point to Newsom’s statement this week that the state could be “just days, not weeks” from re-opening services. Bennett pointed out, however, that the last phase of re-opening includes large gatherings such as concerts and sports events. Even professional sports leagues considering returning to action this summer are discussing plans to hold games with no one in the stands because of social distancing concerns.

In addition, Bennett said that even if it was later determined that a delayed traditional graduation ceremony could be held in late July or August, many of the students are expected to be heading away to college or enlisting in the military, as is usually the case. He also said it would be a logistical problem if, as Newsom has suggested, the next school year would be starting in July.

“We were originally thinking of having it in July, but it appears it would be the same problem with social distancing,” Bennett said.

Those arguments aren't good enough for parents, not to mention students and perhaps even some teachers and staff members. Paloma Valley High School students are organizing a protest at the school on Thursday, according to Paloma Valley senior Preston Root. The purpose of the protest is to request that district officials plan an in-person graduation ceremony at a later date, even if it is in the fall.

“For something that’s so monumental to the students, just an online ceremony is not a correct representation of what we have earned,” Root said. “We’re asking for a postponement until the Thanksgiving break or even the winter break, when most students would be home. That would give ample time.”

Root said the protest grew out of a series of text messages among Paloma Valley students and eventually included special pages on social media. He said students from Heritage High and Perris High have voiced their support for the event, as have many parents and some teachers.

“We’ve heard from teachers and staff who support this,” Root said. “They say they will be there on Thursday, but they have to be careful in how they support us because of the position they’re in.”

Root said those who attend the protest will be required to wear face coverings and maintain social distancing of six feet. Anyone who feels ill should not attend, he said.

“It’s not the virtual graduation we’re frustrated about; it’s that no actual graduation at a later time has been planned. We are seeking the ultimate walk across the stage to receive our diploma.

“We don’t want to look back in 30 years and say we never got the opportunity to receive our diploma on that stage.”

Bennett told Menifee 24/7 on Friday that district officials left open the possibility of an actual ceremony in some form in the fall. Root said that’s not the impression left by the virtual graduation announcement, which didn’t mention that possibility.

“We’re not pushing against the district as much as we are pushing for them to plan a ceremony later,” Root said. “The early report is that this [the virtual graduation] is it. They may have indicated there’s the possibility of a postponed ceremony later, but we want them to ensure now that it is being planned, not just a possibility.”