Natrona School District Uncertain About Graduation Ceremonies

The Natrona County School District has not yet decided whether it will conduct high school graduation ceremonies due to the uncertainty about the coronavirus pandemic, its incoming superintendent told the board of trustees on Monday.

"We are exploring all options for graduation and will work with our public health officers and administrators over the next couple of weeks to determine what graduation will look like for our seniors," Mike Jennings said during the virtual meeting of the board on the district's YouTube channel.

"We want to share our sincere appreciation to all of the students, families, staff and community members who are working together to navigate these challenging times," he said.

Jennings noted that many scheduled events in the community and nation have been canceled or rescheduled including Casper College's and the University of Wyoming's graduation ceremonies, sporting events and sports seasons.

"We are acutely aware of of the importance and need of the graduation of our high school seniors, their families, the district and the community," he said. "We continue to monitor the impact of COVID-19 and the restrictions and regulations that have been put in place to slow the spread of the disease."

Meanwhile, the district will continue its remote learning programs that ended their first full week last week, Jennings said.

The district has received numerous, mostly positive, comments from parents about the remote learning programs, he said.

However, some parents have expressed frustration related to the closure of schools and businesses as they try to conductlrarning from home while trying to complete everyday tasks, Jennings said.

Trustee Dave Applegate expressed the sadness for the students whose senior year events have been canceled, but said he hopes that graduation can happen.

Trustee Kianna Smith said that if graduation cannot happen on May 28 and 29 that the district could find a way to reschedule it as an in-person ceremony.