The Fox C-6 School District had to change graduation plans for its two high schools after officials learned the site where the commencement ceremonies were supposed to be held might not be available in May.
Ceremonies for the district’s seniors will now be held on May 24 and May 25 at The Family Arena, 2002 Arena Parkway St., in St. Charles. Seckman High School’s ceremony is set for 7 p.m. Monday, May 24, and Fox High School’s ceremony is planned for 7 p.m. Tuesday, May 25, said Tammy Cardona, assistant superintendent of secondary education.
Fox previously announced the district would hold its graduation ceremonies on Sunday, May 23, at Chaifetz Arena on the St. Louis University campus. Cardona said those plans had to be scrapped, however, when arena officials informed the district that large gatherings may not be permitted in the city in May because of concerns about the spread of COVID-19.
“My heart sank because I did not want our families to go through what they did last year when we had to keep moving graduations around due to the COVID pandemic and the restrictions that were in place,” Cardona said. “That’s when we made the decision to find another venue and not wait so that our families could plan accordingly.”
The two high schools ended up holding their graduation ceremonies in July 2020 at The Family Arena last school year after plans fell through to hold the events at the district’s traditional Chaifetz Arena location.
Cardona said the district considered holding the ceremonies at the schools’ football fields, but because the capacity would have been capped at about 1,500 people at each of the fields, the district looked for a different facility. She also said the district would like to return to Chaifetz Arena for graduation ceremonies in the future.
“The Fox School District has been very appreciative of The Family Arena and their willingness to allow us to use their venue now for the last two years for graduation when Chaifetz was not able to do that,” Cardona said. “At this time, we have no plans to move graduation permanently to The Family Arena. Our hope is to be back at Chaifetz Arena for the 2022 graduation ceremonies.”
As of April 5, The Family Arena was allowing 50 percent of its seating capacity of 9,700 in the facility, Cardona said.
She said there are about 425 seniors graduating from each high school this year, and Fox is awaiting final regulations from The Family Arena operators to determine how many tickets will be allotted to the graduates.
Cardona said the district expects to allow each graduate to have at least six tickets, like last year.
She also said families likely will be asked to maintain 6 feet of space between each group, wear masks and have their temperatures checked at the entry gates again this year.
“Anytime we as a district can find a way to celebrate our students it is a huge plus during these uncertain times,” Cardona said. “There is nothing more special than watching our graduates and their families be able to celebrate this amazing accomplishment.”
