By: Gillian Evans
For most college students, graduation day marks the end of a long, happy, stressful, life-changing journey. It’s a day for students and their families to celebrate in their accomplishments and dedication, and to look forward to what lies ahead.
Winter commencement for recent graduate, Jesse Walter, and her family was special because it’s the first college ceremony they’ve attended.
“Commencement meant everything to me and my family! I’m a first generation college graduate; my family and myself had been waiting for this day for more than three years,” said Walter.
For winter graduate, Janolin Higgins, graduation provided closure for her and her family.
“It was more important to my family than it was myself. I found that it helped me close a chapter in my life. For my family, it is where what I have been working on the past three- and-a-half years came to life for them,” said Higgins.
Without a doubt, graduation is a special day. However, for graduates at winter commencement, this day took an unexpected turn due to a winter storm and the subsequent actions by Western officials.
Originally scheduled for Saturday, December 17, many graduates had coordinated with their families months prior to the ceremony. But, because of the winter snow and ice storm, Western officials cancelled commencement due to poor travel conditions and safety concerns.
Officials, however, did not cancel commencement until Saturday morning, the day of graduation.
“It was devastating. Not only did my family travel in the dangerous weather to see me walk across the stage, but they traveled more than halfway before we found out it was cancelled” said Walter. “They did not inform us until most families had already been on the road for most of the time, when the weather was at its worst.”
Later that afternoon, Academic Affairs announced that commencement would be rescheduled for Tuesday, December 20 at 11am. In hopes of accommodating more students and families, a second ceremony for 7pm was also added by Saturday evening.
Despite officials’ attempts to include many students and families, rescheduling for Tuesday had the opposite effect.
“I was happy that they rescheduled it; however, I was disappointed. Because of the canceling and rescheduling, my family members were not able to attend either ceremony due to work, and the time it takes to travel to Missouri Western from where they live,” said Higgins.
“Since it was rescheduled on a weekday most of my family members were not able to make it to commencement,” said Walter. “I was able to attend, but only because my new boss saw my sad Facebook post and was a Western alum. Not everyone was as lucky though.”
The rescheduled ceremonies lacked traditional Western graduation aspects, as well, due to the short notice. Instead of being held in the gymnasium, they were held in the Fulkerson Center. The symphonic wind ensemble did not attend and play, nor did several professors and school officials.
Caleb Funkhauser, a percussionist in the wind ensemble, and several of his bandmates had stayed on campus or in Saint Joseph to play at commencement until it was cancelled.
“I know for most it was a minor inconvenience, like for people that had to stay the whole week just to
play commencement then it ended up not happening anyway,” said Funkhauser.
According to Jennie Mcdonald from Academic Affairs, there were 316 students that graduated this winter. From this, 83 participated in the 11:00 a.m. ceremony and 115 participated in the 7:00 p.m. ceremony. Since the first winter graduation in 1998, this was the first time Western has had to cancel or postpone a December ceremony.
