On Dec. 8, the Whitman administrative team announced in an email that the class of 2024 will graduate on June 5 at Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) Constitution Hall for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic.
The change was due to community feedback and a desire to increase the number of tickets for each graduate from four to six, administrators wrote.
Senior India Walsh appreciates that the new location allows graduates to invite more guests.
“I’m really happy that it was moved to the Constitutional Hall because now my grandparents are able to go to my graduation, which they wouldn’t have been able to do at Whitman,” Walsh said.
Administrators have held the ceremony outside at Jerome M. Marco stadium since 2021 to prevent COVID transmission. In 2022, seniors and their guardians could vote in a poll whether they would like the graduation to stay at the stadium or go back to the pre-pandemic location of DAR Constitution Hall. The result was another year of graduation at the football field.
This year, after a similar poll, administrators decided to revert back to DAR Constitution Hall. In addition to the location change, the ceremony will be held at 2:30 p.m. rather than in the morning.
According to graduation coordinator Abbie Lamb, administrators decided on the location change to avoid inclement weather concerns, maximize space for guests and to ensure that the venue could provide all the necessary production resources.
In 2023, administrators delayed the ceremony for nine hours due to poor air quality. The eventual graduation, held at 6 p.m., included significant precautions to manage the air quality conditions, including encouragement from administrators to wear masks during the ceremony and the opportunity for guests to watch it remotely.
Senior Noah Lantor was happy about the change to an indoor venue because it avoids weather volatility and allows all guests, including at-risk populations, to enjoy the ceremony, he said.
“I think it’s beneficial to switch it to DAR because most of the years we’re sitting out here in 100 degree heat for hours, and people’s grandparents can’t always stand that,” Lantor said. “The fact that it got moved to DAR I think is beneficial for a lot of people, including the school because it seems like they wanted it moved.”
