FORT WORTH (1080 KRLD) - Texas Motor Speedway can now add "graduation venue" to its list of functions.
Thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, many school districts in North Texas are holding virtual graduation ceremonies; some have canceled them altogether.
But school districts in Denton County approached Texas Motor Speedway and asked if it could host graduation ceremonies since its massive size could easily accommodate social distancing.
"Fortunately, the folks in Denton County thought of the deal and said what about it, and we think is great," says Eddie Gossage, president of Texas Motor Speedway.
The graduation ceremonies will have the feel of a drive-in movie.
"The students will be on pit road and receive their diploma, etc., while the parents, families and friends sit in their cars like at a drive-in movie theater and get to watch and hear the ceremony on Big Hoss (TMS' gigantic video screen) and through their car radios," says Gossage.
Graduates and their families will be able to obtain a photo of the special moment.
"Most schools, if not all the schools, are making arrangements for every student to be photographed as they get their diploma so that the family will have that moment captured," Gossage says.
The speedway's size makes it possible to hold graduation ceremonies while safely social distancing -- in fact, according to TMS, every professional sports venue in Texas, with Texas A&M's Kyle Field thrown in for good measure, can fit inside the track's infield.
"We've got so much room because the venue is so large," Gossage says. "We can make sure that we can do that where you might not be able to do that in an arena or even a stadium with some of these large classes."
Some of the larger high schools in Denton County have graduating classes of upwards of 1000 students.
Gossage says he's more than happy to help during this unprecedented time.
"It's a great way to give these students a special day, which they deserve when you get to be a graduating senior," he says.
The speedway will also be live-streaming the ceremonies online.
