York High School Graduation Presents a Quandry for Officials

It’s only mid-way through the school year, but Elmhurst District 205 School Board members and staff already are talking about the last day of school, final exams and graduation.

Memorial Day falls on Monday, May 30, this year and the last official day of school, provided no snow days are used, is Wednesday, June 1. So scheduling graduation, particularly York High School graduation, is tricky, York Principal Diana Smith told the board Tuesday.

“The recommendation from York administration is (to hold graduation) Sunday, May 22,” Smith said. “We believe the current model of allowing seniors to get out a few days early accomplishes a number of goals.”

York provides two sets of exam dates, with seniors taking their exams early and underclassmen taking theirs right up until the last day of school, Smith said.

“The practice has served us well,” she said.

It’s no surprise that rambunctious seniors in their last weeks of school have been known to pull pranks, and many have just a general lack of motivation. Most will be going on to college and already will have been accepted at their chosen schools.

The May 22 graduation date “provides a space of time that seniors are out of the building … and it provides a nice atmosphere for underclassmen as they take their finals,” Smith said. "It’s not hard to appreciate the importance of having a quiet, peaceful, highly academic end to the school year."

It also allows teachers time to verify seniors’ exam grades, she said.

A few years ago, seniors had the opportunity to opt out of finals. Board member Jim Collins suggested the district bring back that practice.

"These kids have worked very hard," he said. "They've already been accepted to college. If you're happy with your grades ... "

But Smith said it is “critically important” that seniors take exams.

“That’s when you replicate what they’re going to have in their first semester of college,” she said. “They are probably the most important group to take a final exam. It is an important culminating experience.”

She said the reward for seniors instead is letting them go early.

“Our kids have really responded well to that,” she said. “We’ve finally reached the point where all the kids assume they’re going to have finals.”

Board member Deb Conroy agreed.

“They need to be accountable at the end of the year,” she said.

Smith mentioned other ideas that had been discussed by York staff to avoid seniors losing so much educational time at the end of the year, but those options had inherent problems.

Parents want a weekend day for graduation, but for many families, the Memorial Day holiday weekend is a time for travel, she said.

They discussed moving all levels of exams to Monday and Tuesday before the holiday, with graduation on the Friday before, but then there would be 2,600 kids in school for several days with no structured classes, she said.

Another option discussed was holding graduation a week after the last day of school, on June 8, but then they would have to ask students and staff to come back after school was out.

“This year is unique the way the Memorial Day weekend falls,” Smith said. “We felt this year that there really weren’t a lot of options.”

Collins noted that "this is a crowd-control issue" and suggested that in the future, seniors be required to do final projects to keep them busy.

Board President Peggy Ostojic said the board needs to find creative ways to close the gap going forward. She thanked Smith for explaining the reasons for the May 22 graduation date.

“Losing that week was something we really needed to understand,” Ostojic said.

Smith said it’s important to get the graduation date out to parents as soon as possible. The board will vote on the date at a future meeting.

Middle school promotion dates also were discussed.

Superintendent Lynn Krizic said principals at all three middle schools would like to repeat last year's model for graduation.

Last year, Sandburg and Bryan middle schools held their ceremonies in the gym at York. Sandburg’s is tentatively scheduled for Thursday, May 26, with students returning the following day for all-day activities. Bryan and Churchville graduation would be on Friday, May 27, with Churchville holding the ceremony in its own gym, Krizic said.

If an emergency day is used, the dates would be moved to Tuesday and Wednesday, May 31 and June 1.

"The strategy last year was to announce a tentative date to parents, with confirmation prior to spring break depending on emergency days," Krizic said, adding that is likely going to be the process this year.