Graduation Ceremony Details

This year’s graduation ceremony will be held on the lawn by the chapel on Friday, June 8, at 10 a.m. In the event of heavy rain, the ceremony will be held in the Fitzgibbons Convocation Center.

The logistics are important:

Dress Code
The traditional dress code will be in effect: white dresses (or blouse and skirt) for the girls, and blue blazers, light trousers, shirts and ties for the boys.

Sun plan
Graduation seating moves out into the quad in front of Robert Saltonstall Gymnasium, with the stage or dais located on the grass closest to the chapel steps. Seniors sit up front facing the crowd. Invited guests, trustees, and faculty form the first section of audience seats, and underclass students sit in sections on the sides – facing the main seating area. Graduates’ families and friends use the seats immediately behind faculty.

Rain plan
Graduation seating that replicates the outdoor format fills the Fitzgibbons Convocation Center (FCC), meaning that, in the event of rain, we can still easily accommodate however many family members and guests wish to attend.

Luncheon
A light buffet lunch will be served after the ceremony.

Barbecue Picnic
We are once again planning a barbecue picnic for the graduating students and their parents on the evening of Thursday, June 7. We hope that you will be able to attend this final gathering of the class, parents and faculty before graduation. A variety of performances will accompany this picnic, so that parents may have one last chance to witness some of the many talents in this class.

Graduation Speaker
This year, Sarah Sze, Class of ‘87, will address the graduation. An artist and sculptor, she holds a B.A. from Yale University and an M.F.A. from Columbia University’s School of Visual Arts, where she was also an adjunct professor. She has had solo exhibits at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, and the Institute of Contemporary Art, London, and she has participated in group shows in the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, the Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh, and the Akademie der Kunst, Berlin. Ms. Sze, who in 2003 was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship in recognition of her talent and originality, is an artist who uses ordinary objects to create striking works of art such as “The Edge of One of Many Circles,” the sculpture that now hangs in the Schwarz Student Center. She finds inspiration from architecture and art history, creating works that provide the viewer with a sense of wonder, visual pleasure, and a fresh way to see familiar space. Her remarks are sure to be thoughtful and inspiring, and we are thrilled to welcome her back to Milton.

Photographs
Milton’s tradition of awarding diplomas in random order makes it challenging for many parents to take their own pictures. Because of this, we arrange for a professional photographer to take pictures of each graduating senior. Proofs will be sent to you over the summer, at which time you can decide whether or not to order copies. There is no obligation to purchase.

Parking and traffic flow
We will make special arrangements for parking and traffic flow for graduation. Our staff, with assistance from the Milton police, will be there to direct you. The plan at the moment is for all parking to be on the Upton Field and the Junior Building parking lot. Access to those sites will be from the west end of Centre Street. Please do not park on Voses Lane, Randolph Avenue or on Centre Street.

Because of the picnic and the number of people who will be on campus beginning on Thursday afternoon, Academy Road, which runs in front of the Saltonstall Gym and west campus dormitories, will be closed from 5 p.m. on Thursday until about 1 p.m. on Friday. Parents who wish to load belongings from dorm rooms on the west campus during these times should use the access road behind the dormitories.

Handicapped or elderly access
If a member of your party needs to be dropped off close to the ceremony site or requires handicapped access, please communicate with campus safety the morning of graduation and they will facilitate arrangements.

Graduation parties
I need also to add a cautionary note about graduation parties. While we know that this is the season for celebrations, for sharing special occasions with family and friends, we want to ensure that these celebrations do not risk the safety and well-being of our students.

Alcohol and drugs may seem, especially to graduating seniors, to be rewards to which they are entitled, and the pressure on parents to accept this thinking may be very strong. We hope you will resist this pressure. Please act responsibly if you host a gathering, and help your sons and daughters to make good and healthy choices at this time of year.

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