Many school plans have fallen to the wayside due to the COVID-19 virus, Morden Collegiate Institute (MCI) is working to ensure their 2020 graduating class get a memorable experience, although not "traditional."

The Grad Planning Committee has been working hard to find a way to recognize and celebrate the graduates' accomplishments, says MCI Principal Marianne Fenn, while being respectful of the provincial health orders.

According to Vice-Principal Tania Sigurdson, MCI always puts tremendous effort into their graduation ceremonies. But one of the things that stands out the most to her and Fenn is how it seems the entire city celebrates the occasion.

"Our graduating classes have fluctuated between a 110 to 115 this year we have 150," says Sigurdson," but when we do grad in our typical way, over a thousand people come out and celebrate our grads. We know our community comes out, they don't have to be connected directly to a graduate, they're coming out because MCI is the youth of the community, the city of Morden. We celebrate those kids in such a huge way, and it's always been so impressive to me it isn't a school or division event, it's a Morden event."

She says they've kept that in mind as they look at this year's event, not only to include the community but to celebrate how the grads have had to step up in a way they never were prepared and risen to the challenge.

Although many plans aren't set in stone, there are some things they are confident they are doing, says Fenn. MCI will provide a convocation, and how that looks will be dependent on what is allowed at the time graduation would usually fall. She says, based on information from Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Brent Roussin, in the phases of opening Manitoba, no large events or gatherings of people will be permitted or even considered until September of 2020.

"The plan right now is to do a video version of a graduation or convocation ceremony. Every kid is going to get a cap and gown and receive a diploma from the principal or vice-principal of this school. How and where we're going to film that I'm not certain as of yet, as that's the part that will rely on what current health orders say at the time. We will videotape each student receiving their diploma, and we'll compile that film, and our hope is if things stay as they are or get better, we can watch it as a collective with the graduating class at the drive-in theatre in Morden."

The class can select still a class valedictorian, and this person will record their address to their classmates to be included in the video. Students will have the chance to qualify for and to earn scholarships and awards, and the receipt of those awards will be embedded in the film.

This would be our ideal plan, says Fenn, and the school has been in contact with Stardust Drive-in, but the theatre is also working through the process of determining what they are and are not allowed to do. Fenn notes if they can make the drive-in plan work, there will be strict social distancing requirements in place, and cooperation is the only way the plan could work.

It's a unique experience with many moving pieces. Fenn says the local community, local businesses, and the city have been incredibly supportive in finding innovative ways to help the school in the projects they're putting together to make the 2020 graduation possible. The school will continue to provide information as they can and encourage students to keep working hard, stay focused, keep learning, and stay safe and well.