Principals ask Monongalia County board to hold all three 2026 high school graduations Friday evening

Monongalia County Board of Education members heard a proposal on Feb. 11 to hold all three high school graduation ceremonies simultaneously on the Friday evening of Memorial Day weekend in 2026 so families would have the remainder of the weekend to celebrate and staff would have more flexibility for weather-related changes.

The proposal was introduced by Dr. Campbell, the superintendent, who asked the board to give an initial “thumbs up” so staff could build the 2026 calendar around the idea and include the dates when they bring the calendar forward for formal approval. Dr. Campbell said part of the calendar — including graduation dates — must be approved by the state.

Mr. Mahalco, a high school principal, and Mrs. Green, a high school principal, told the board they and their communities support the change. As Mrs. Green put it, “Friday would allow then all of us to have that Saturday morning too as sort of a weather related if we have to do that kind of thing,” adding that a Friday start would give families a full weekend even if weather forced a shift to Saturday. The principals also noted that holding ceremonies at school sites has produced strong family response and better photos and community atmosphere compared with the previous practice of using larger rented venues.

Board members discussed logistics and trade-offs. Several members said they value attending multiple graduations but acknowledged livestreaming and recordings provide access for those unable to attend more than one ceremony. The board also noted a recurring conflict: the West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission (WVSSAC) state track meet is scheduled Friday–Saturday and will likely continue to conflict with some students’ events; the principals said the track meet schedule has conflicted with graduations across the state for many years and that statewide fixes have not been adopted.

The board did not take a final vote on the graduation dates on Feb. 11. Instead, members signaled support for staff to “start building our calendar around that idea” and asked staff to return with a calendar for formal approval, including identification of potential glitches and contingencies for weather or competing events.

Next steps: staff will draft the 2026 school calendar reflecting the simultaneous-Friday concept and present it to the board when the calendar comes up for formal approval; state approval of graduation dates will remain a required step.