Drive-in diplomas

Production trucks.

LED video screens.

Remote high-speed Wi-Fi.

This is no normal graduation plan.

With unanimous approval from senior class and student council officers, Jay County High School is moving forward with plans for a drive-in graduation ceremony.

“Just the way things are looking right now, there really wouldn’t be an option to have a regular graduation,” said senior class president Devan Bennett. “And with this option, we still get the feeling of being at the school and the feeling of togetherness, even if it’s not ordinary.”

The ceremony is designed to be workable under the current stay-at-home order and social distancing recommendations that are in place in response to the coronavirus pandemic. If such restrictions are lifted in advance of the scheduled graduation day — June 7 — the school could shift back to a more traditional commencement ceremony. If conditions worsen, the health department could rescind its approval of the drive-in event.

There is also the possibility of holding a more traditional graduation ceremony at a later date when conditions allow in addition to the drive-in version. The thinking from both administrators and student leaders was to have a ceremony in early June to allow seniors to participate before going off to the workforce, military or college.

“We’re not saying we can’t do a traditional commencement,” said Jay School Corporation superintendent Jeremy Gulley. “Do now what you can, even under these circumstances. So if the governor extends the stay-at-home, this was built for that.

“To my way of thinking, you needed to have something you could depend on.”

Here’s the plan:

•Seniors will gather in their vehicles in the “driving range” parking lot that sits between the softball and soccer fields at Jay County High School. There would be a limit of one vehicle per senior to be joined by their immediate family (those who live in their household).

•With local law enforcement assisting, parking would be directed to allow maximum space between vehicles for social distancing purposes. Commonwealth Engineers has assisted Jay School Corporation with a parking lot layout plan.

•Windows would remain rolled up during the event. It will be live-streamed online and broadcast via WPGW radio to allow those in their cars and at home to watch and listen in.

•A stage will be set up on the west side of the lot near the soccer field. Administrators and students who typically speak during graduation will be able to do so from the stage. They will also have the option to pre-record their speeches.

•An LED video screen will be set up near the middle of the parking lot to give those in the back of the lot a better view.

•Each senior’s name will be read and families will be encouraged to honk horns and flash lights in recognition.

•Vehicles will drive in a slow procession past the stage, where students will receive a sterilized diploma jacket. (Actual diplomas will be sent through the mail to avoid the need to have student vehicles in alphabetical order.)

The event is designed to include most of the elements that are typically involved at graduation.

“I’m just excited that we’re having something,” said Chase McFarland, senior class vice president. “I know that a lot of schools are just saying, ‘Here’s your diploma. We’ll mail it to you.’ There’s no ceremony or anything at all. We’re still getting something at least. They’re doing the best that they can for us.”

Students will be able to pick up information packets, caps and gowns from 1 to 4 p.m. April 30 at JCHS.

The process of planning an alternate graduation has been underway for weeks.

JCHS principal Chad Dodd reached out to senior class and student council officers — senior class secretary/student council treasurer Leah Hamilton, senior class treasurer/student council secretary Cheyenne Liette, student council president Adrianna Stein, student council sergeant-at-arms Reid Claycomb, student council at-large representative Mikele Suman, Bennett and McFarland — shortly after the shift to e-learning began and scheduled a meeting that involved the student leaders, their advisors and administrators. They discussed various possibilities for graduation, including the drive-in option.

“We all kind of were hesitant at first about this idea,” said McFarland, while adding that students were asked for other ideas and their input.

After taking some time to consider options, they moved forward with the drive-in idea.

“It’s the most safe and effective way right now that we can do it,” McFarland added.

Gulley then took the preliminary drive-in plan to Jay County Health Department for its approval. Jay School Board gave its OK on Monday, and the plan returned Tuesday to the class officers and student council representatives for their review.

They gave it unanimous approval.

McFarland noted that one of the goals was to make the ceremony personal for the members of the Class of 2020. For instance, there will be video of each student receiving his or her diploma jacket, he said.

JCHS vocational radio/TV teacher Lori Reece will also be working to put together senior memory slideshows and videos to be used during the graduation ceremony. And class and student council officers are planning to shoot videos sharing their thoughts about this year and their class’ experiences.

Other ideas include: Playing a recording of the JCHS band playing the national anthem or asking an individual member to perform it live; a “processional” playing “Pomp and Circumstance” while showing photos of each senior; senior choir or band members performing a song pre-recorded or live.

Students will also be allowed to decorate their vehicles for the ceremony, Bennett added.

“It will be a really loud and proud event,” she said.

Suman credited Claycomb with pointing out that while the drive-in is not the graduation that was expected, the class of 2020 is breaking new ground and living the stories they will share with their children and grandchildren.

“He really gave us a lot of hope,” she said. “He said it was something that no one ever documented has done this, ever. This is something completely different and our class is going to be remembered in a different way because of this. It’s something that we’re going to be able to be remembered for for years.”

In addition to the modeling from Commonwealth Engineers, Jay School Corporation is working with other partners to make the first-of-its-kind event a reality.

FrontRunner Media of Indianapolis is slated to coordinate the broadcast that will incorporate live video from the ground and drones as well as pre-recorded pieces. The LED video screen will be rented from Neoti of Bluffton. Watch Communications, a sister company of Portland’s Community Fiber Solutions, will set up mobile Wi-Fi to provide service to all those in attendance at graduation. And G3 Drone Solutions of Hartford City will provide drone video.

Coordination of all of those aspects began today, as Gulley held a conference call with each of the companies involved.

Initial cost estimates for the ceremony come in at just over $11,000. Most of that total will be covered by a $10,000 grant from Watch.

“That’s the only way I can guarantee families get a high-quality experience,” said Gulley. “I cannot pull this off with this degree of sophistication … unless you pay professional people to do it.”

Knowing there are likely to be some hiccups with a new event bringing together so many aspects of technology, JCHS will use its annual Honors Night as a dry run. Instead of announcing scholarships and other awards on the first Monday in May in the auditorium, the event will shift to a drive-in format in the parking lot at 2 p.m. May 9.

“So we can proof it. We can rehearse it. We can test it,” said Gulley. “We know what works, what didn’t before we go to the big show.”

Original plans called for simply having counselors read through the entire list of scholarship winners. But the student leaders offered a different idea that will be implemented.

The school corporation will reach out to all of the organizations that are typically involved and offer them the opportunity to record a short video announcing their scholarship winners. Those will be used during the Honors Day event, with counselors filling in where necessary.

Responding to criticism of the drive-in graduation plan on social media, Bennett said it’s important for the community to understand that she and her classmates have been involved from the start.

“There has been very direct senior thought put into this,” she said. “And it’s not just adults making decisions for us. We’re a very important part of this process. And we’re going to make sure that everything works best for our class.”

It’s been a difficult end to their senior year in many ways, said Suman. But, she added, the adversity has made her appreciate her senior class and life in general.

She added that she’s been “astounded” by the effort from administrators to work with students on a graduation plan.

“I knew that they care about us, but the amount of effort that they are putting into this and the obvious time that they are taking to try to give us something that they know that we want has been completely amazing,” Suman said. “I feel so thankful to have an administration and have people in power who care so much about us.”