Two area private schools have set dates for their graduation ceremonies.
Pillow Academy will hold its ceremony for the Class of 2020 at 6 p.m. June 19 at the Leflore County Civic Center.
Carroll Academy will hold a graduation ceremony at 7 p.m. May 18 at the school’s football field, weather permitting.
Pillow set its graduation in June because the school was “trying to predict when we might have a window of opportunity to have a traditional graduation ceremony with family and friends being able to attend,” said Pillow Headmaster Rodney Brown.
The school is planning for a traditional ceremony but will follow national, state and local guidelines for gatherings, Brown said.
“We have to adhere to the regulations at the time regarding how many folks can gather, and we will absolutely adhere to the rules and regulations regarding gatherings,” he said.
Brown said the school will assess the situation on June 1 and provide more details about the ceremony.
“When we get a clearer picture, if some of the restrictions have been lifted or things are opening up, we’ll make the determination of what the ceremony will look like as far as attendance,” he said. “We may have to make some adjustments to our plans depending on what the rules are at the time.”
Carroll Academy’s graduation ceremony will not be open to the public. Its 26 seniors will each receive five tickets for guests.
“We’re just strictly going through the graduation procedure,” said Carroll Academy Headmaster Penny Mitchell. “The seniors will march in, and we will have our val and sal speeches, and they’ll get their diplomas. That’s pretty much it.”
Mitchell said those attending will need to practice social distancing.
“We hate we had to modify it and do it the way we’re doing it,” she said. “We’re just trying to do our best so these kids can have a good graduation.”
Carroll seniors finished distance learning classes on April 30, and the rest of the school’s students will finish classes May 15.
Pillow Academy has 59 seniors graduating, and their last day of class will be Friday. The last day of class for Pillow students in grades K4-11 will be May 15.
Because of the coronavirus pandemic, Carroll Academy announced its campus would remain closed for the rest of the school year on April 24, and Pillow made the announcement on April 28.
Both schools decided on a week-to-week basis whether their campuses would remain closed until the recent announcements. Students have been taking their classes through distance learning since March.
In an executive order released in mid-April, Gov. Tate Reeves closed public school buildings for the rest of the year.
The Greenwood Leflore Consolidated School District will hold graduation ceremonies for Greenwood, Leflore County and Amanda Elzy high schools later this
month.
Each ceremony will start at 9:30 a.m. at the Leflore County Civic Center. Leflore County High’s will be held on May 26; Amanda Elzy’s will be May 27; and Greenwood High’s will be May 28.
•Contact Ruthie Robison at 581-7235 or rrobison@gwcommonwealth.com.
