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FRAMINGHAM – The Class of 2023 will celebrate their graduation on Friday night, said Superintendent of Schools Bob Tremblay to the School Committee tonight.
Graduation will be on Friday, June 2. He said the administration would be notifying parents on Thursday.
“Historically the first Sunday in June, has been the Framingham High School commencement. Over the years we’ve had, whether it’s because of climate change or unusually hot Sundays, we’ve had a number of issues of health concern and heatstroke and other challenges. So we moved to try, coming out of the pandemic, something different,” said Supt. Tremblay.
Some districts have this Friday night under the lights idea that seemed to go pretty well. We give an initial survey earlier before that and it was like 78% that were in support of high school families to move to a Friday. So we did that. In doing so though we weren’t entirely sensitive to the fact of sunset on Friday evening to sunset on Saturday and that became a problem for some of our faith,” said Supt. Tremblay to the School Committee
So the high school put out another survey asking if it should stay on Friday or go to Thursday night?
“But we think we can keep the Friday,” Supt. Tremblay told the School Committee tonight, February 1.
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“We’ve already, it’s been published or put out there already about Friday, June 2nd for this year. People have made plans, probably booked flights, travel arrangements, parties are being thrown, caterers booked. I think there’s a lot of logistics that people have already planned and to be mindful of that, but also I think if we can get an earlier start on the commencement on Friday night,” said Supt. Trenblay.
To be mindful of the religious services, the Superintendent said he checked and sundown is not until 8:17 and he things the administration can start and end the graduation ceremony before that time.
“Right now we have it slated for 6 p.m. and it’s been running about two hours, so that we get everybody out by 8,” said Supt. Tremblay. “I think that would be showing at least good effort, good faith effort to our community to move that sooner. So without changing the date or putting out an additional survey intend to keep the date and doesn’t require a school committee vote.”
“We’ll have the high school administration informed families tomorrow of this intention,” said the Superintendent.
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