Hello everyone, I hope you and your families are safe and well.
It’s that time of the year when our future leaders and shapers are set free from their studies with a final hurrah of hat-tossing and merrymaking. Every celebration provides a sense of closure for one chapter of life, and the opening to another, and means a great deal to students, families, and educators. But like most things this year, 2020 has its own plans. No hugs, no farewells, and worse of all, no chance to celebrate in person with the friends you’ve made. College friendships are built on solid foundations of laughter, partying, and getting in and out of trouble together. These are the friendships that last a lifetime.
If there was ever a generation of graduates who could benefit from some sound advice and a double serving of hope, then it’s the Class of 2020. They may not be united by pomp this year but they are united by circumstance, the pandemic class that has the entire world striving to graduate with them. This is an opportunity to highlight the positive and come together to support one another than when other parts of life are uncertain.
Wise-ish Words for Graduation is a gift for The Class of 2020. You’ll find it filled with heartfelt and humorous advice to help them take the next step and get them chasing down their dreams again.
Remember that our free video celebration service is a great way for any Class of 2020 to immortalise their graduation time together, even though they can’t be together. Make your class of 2020 video here.
In Japan, a university has held a graduation ceremony for students using avatar robots remotely controlled by graduating students from their homes. The avatar robots were dressed in graduation caps and gowns for the ceremony, complete with tablets projecting the graduates’ proud faces.
Meanwhile in the USA, on the 6th June, Youtube will be hosting a video graduation ceremony with commencement addresses delivered by the Obamas. YouTube’s “Dear Class of 2020” will feature other celebs and notable names including BTS, Lady Gaga, and Alicia Keys. You can get your free tickets here.
Students at the University of Pennsylvania have recreated their campuses in Minecraft and the detail is mindblowing. Many of them are organizing virtual versions of traditions and ceremonies that will be held and viewed in the Minecraft world.
If there’s one thing that cannot be taken away from The Class of 2020, it’s their creativity and resourcefulness. It will serve them well in an uncertain future.
That’s it for this week. If working from home has started to feel more like trying to work at home and homeschooling leaves you reaching for the Morningjuice* a little earlier in the day than you’d care to admit, then you are not alone. Cut yourself some slack. Congratulate yourself for getting this far and put your feet up for a day.
Stay safe everyone.
Keep smiling (from behind that facemask).
It’s going to be alright.
*Morningjuice (noun): The glass of wine you pour at 9 am on a workday. As in “I’ve switched over completely from coffee to morningjuice,” Ellen said, setting out her collagen supplements for the day, “and I’m sleeping a lot better at night.”
(Thanks to Julie Tremaine’s Quarantine Dictionary)
