Austin ISD cancels proms, delays graduations until August

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AUSTIN (Talk1370.com) -- Graduating seniors in Austin ISD will have to wait a little longer to walk across the stage, as the district is postponing its graduation ceremonies until August.

The district made the announcement Wednesday in a message to district families.

School officials have also canceled proms due to the pandemic, in an effort to work with vendors to refund monies to students and families.

District officials say the graduation ceremonies originally set for May 26-28 will now be held on August 10-13, but the new dates remain subject to change dependent on conditions. A revised schedule is available on the district's website.

The district says schools are also working on a virtual graduation ceremony to be tentatively held in the middle of June.

Here is the message sent to district families:

We know how important the prom and graduation season is to our seniors, their families, and friends. The COVID-19 pandemic, however, is causing changes to all aspects of our lives.

For the safety of our students, staff, and families, and in response to the Stay Home – Work Safe order banning all large gatherings, we are canceling all proms and postponing our graduation ceremonies for this school year. Canceling proms now will allow school administrators to work with vendors to refund monies to students and families.

AISD’s graduation ceremonies originally scheduled for May 26-28, 2020, will be postponed to Aug. 10-13, 2020. All graduations (except Rosedale) will take place at the Erwin Center. As a reminder, because of the ongoing COVID-19 issues, those new dates are subject to change and dependent on conditions at that time. The tentative August graduation schedule is attached. In addition, the High Schools Office, with a committee of parents, students and principals, is working on a virtual graduation ceremony plan. We will announce details about the ceremonies shortly. We expect the virtual graduations to occur on or around June 15, 2020.

We are disappointed that these important milestones cannot continue as scheduled, but we are hopeful that we can come together virtually in June and in-person in August to celebrate the successes of our seniors.