Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Graduation Ceremonies topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Parents and students press Ithaca board to end split graduation ceremonies; trustees schedule follow‑up
Summary
Multiple parents and students criticized the district—s decision to hold two separate high‑school graduation ceremonies, citing inclusivity and logistics; the board agreed to add the issue to the May 27 agenda for more information.
Dozens of family members, students and community residents told the Ithaca City School District Board of Education on Monday that holding two separate high‑school graduation ceremonies hurts inclusivity and unfairly disadvantages students and working families.
Julie Gorman, a parent and Ithaca resident, told the board she started a petition that collected about 266 signatures opposing the two‑ceremony arrangement and urged the district to return to a single ceremony at a facility that can accommodate the whole class. "I have twin boys that are seniors ... this is my only graduation I will ever attend for Ithaca," Gorman said, adding that a later ceremony time is preferable to avoid midday heat and to accommodate working families.
Mary Beth Inken, a parent who said two of her sons attended Ithaca schools, said the district is "four years out of COVID" and that separate ceremonies prevent students from celebrating with everyone they know. "When you have two separate graduations, that's impossible," Inken said, and she asked the board to explain why the district cannot use an alternate indoor facility such as Ithaca College.
Sam Holmes, a senior at Ithaca High School, described friends who were unable to secure seats in the later ceremony and said the sign‑up process created a lottery effect. "Rather, I beg you to see that this graduation represents us, the entire 2025 senior class moving on from the halls we have walked the last four years," Holmes said.
Board members thanked speakers and said they had been surprised and moved by the petition and public comments. One trustee told the room the petition had been shared directly with them and that they had been "totally floored" on learning there were two ceremonies. The board asked Superintendent Brown and staff to bring background and timeline information to the May 27 meeting and indicated the item could be added to that agenda for fuller discussion.
Why it matters: graduates and their families cited fairness, heat exposure and work schedules as reasons to prefer a single ceremony. Parents said the current sign‑up process — which opened during school hours and was, in places, first‑come/first‑served before being changed to a lottery — created confusion and inequity.
Next steps: the board will request a staff report for the May 27 meeting laying out how the current plan was developed, logistical constraints and any deadlines for changing ceremony plans for the 2025 year. Trustees did not adopt a binding change at the meeting.
Additional context: district officials noted past challenges finding indoor venues and tradeoffs that have produced differing community views in prior years; Superintendent Brown and staff reiterated there have been multiple venue options in previous years and that administrative capacity and logistics factor into decisions.
