I am a graduating senior at Brigham Young University. My final year of undergraduate studies has been plagued by virtual courses, pointless assignments and lackluster lectures. However, the university’s administration has determined that our year of virtual misery would be incomplete without a strictly virtual commencement and convocation. They claim that careful considerations were made to ensure adherence to local laws and church regulations.
However, both Provo temples will be opening this month and one can drive fifteen minutes north to BYU’s sister university, UVU, where the administration will be holding in-person ceremonies for all graduates.
Utah State University, Southern Utah University, the University of Utah and Utah Valley University will all be holding in-person ceremonies to honor and congratulate their seniors. Moreover, Freedom Festival organizers claim that the Stadium of Fire will be held in-person this year at BYU’s enormous football stadium, yet the students cannot gather there to commemorate their personal landmark achievements?
Graduates will instead be rewarded with a pre-recorded speech, a slide show, and a picture opportunity with a flimsy cardboard cutout of their respective deans. The administration has let down their seniors by taking the easy way out. This decision and the upcoming virtual ceremonies, in which I am unlikely to participate, truly epitomize my unremarkable senior year at Brigham Young University.
Gerrit Gerritsen, West Valley City
