On June 17, Fayetteville-Manlius High School Executive Principal Ray Kilmer sent the letter below to F-M seniors and their families updating them on changes to the school’s June 25 graduation.
Dear Class of 2021 and families:
Yesterday, NYS removed many of the COVID rules governing high school graduations, which prompted us to immediately look at possible changes to our graduation ceremony. Knowing our campus and facility was limited, I immediately contacted other venues to see if a change in location was possible.
After a frenzied 24 hours, we are pleased to announce that Fayetteville-Manlius High School’s commencement ceremony will now be held at Onondaga County’s St. Joseph’s Health Amphitheater at Lakeview on Friday, June 25, at 6:30 p.m.
This change of venue provides a covered seating area that will allow the ceremony to go on as planned, rain or shine. It has better facilities, such as bathrooms and parking, to better serve our students, their families, and other guests. Finally, this venue will allow us to increase the number of guests per graduate to 8.
We are still working through a number of details and will be communicating more specific instructions early next week. As we no longer need to collect vaccination status or proof of a negative COVID test, registrations will no longer be required through FamilyID. Students will be issued tickets, which will be distributed at graduation rehearsal, now scheduled for Wednesday, June 23, at 12:30 p.m.
I would like to thank the staff at the Amphitheater for their willingness to work with us so quickly to make this a reality. It is not easy to reimagine an event this large in such a short timeframe.
This decision may invoke a variety of emotions; however, I believe this venue will better serve our students and community as we celebrate the Class of 2021!
I will share additional details early next week.
Sincerely,
Ray Kilmer