AUSTIN, Texas — For many high school students, this isn’t the senior year they had planned, but one Austin-area school is sending off its seniors in a cool way.
Seniors at Del Valle High School will get to have a graduation parade at Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in East Austin. The social distancing parade will take place in parking lot A, on Saturday, May 30, at 11 a.m.
There are 650 seniors, and according to the school, students will be in separate cars with separate drivers. Their families will get two parking spots each with at least one space in between them and other families to make sure the event stays safe. KVUE spoke to the principal, Dr. Joseph Welch, who said with all the cancellations of traditional events this year because of the coronavirus pandemic, they wanted the students to still have life-long memories.
“This is a rite of passage for many people and to take it all away, it's painful, so we're doing everything we can at Del Valle High School as well as Dell Valle ISD to try and give them back as much as we can,” said Dr. Welch.
He said putting this together was a team effort between the school, COTA and parents.
“Parents are bringing on a DJ, so it's going to be a big party,” said Dr. Welch. “Especially since it's a contained area, we're able to blare music through the Circuit of the America’s PA system, so as the students are going around, it's going to be a huge celebration. I’m excited.”
This is the first time this type of event has happened at COTA. He said when the school reached out to them and shared what they wanted to do, COTA said yes without hesitation.
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“We're honored to be able to do something nice for the students, as many of them have worked here, and we're very proud of them,” said COTA Founder and Chairman Bobby Epstein.
The parade will be led by Class of 2020 Valedictorian Stephanie Cardenas and Salutatorian Cecilia Corona Rodriguez, followed by Superintendent, Dr. Annette Tielle; DVHS Principal, Dr. Joseph Welch and ECHS Principal Jenise Wright.
A virtual graduation ceremony will take place for the seniors on June 6.
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