Coronavirus has changed a lot of things in the world we lived in. One of the main effects is the one it had on the class of 2020. The class sadly had their prom, last pep rally, grad nite, and graduation stripped away from them. The seniors are missing out on the full senior year experience. 

As well with the cancellation of events such as graduation, the disease has also caused many deaths and loss of jobs. Due to that, people have said that the seniors aren’t seeing the bigger picture and that graduation isn’t that important compared to other tragedies. 

While it is understood that there is something terrible going on in the world and it affects every single person, there is no reason to not allow the class of 2020 to feel heartbroken or upset. . 

“It’s frustrating seeing people invalidate others feelings” a graduating senior commented. 

It’s normal for students to be upset over an important coming of age event being ripped out of their hands a few months right before it was going to happen. This pandemic has deprived seniors of their last moments of childhood fun and has forced them to grow up. 

Schools around the country have been trying their best to make the online transition easier for their seniors by having virtual proms, drive thru graduations, or the promise of a graduation some time in the future. In the meanwhile, students are stuck wondering what could have been. 

Some efforts by the NHHS student body have been to create a petition to get the graduation postponed to a later date. This petition has brought mixed reviews as some students see it as worthless while others believe there’s nothing wrong with at least trying to get graduation rescheduled to a later date. 

One student’s views on the situation were “I personally feel like it’s disrespectful that people are putting down this petition…If anyone has a glimmer of hope that is all that is needed to make a change.” 

Graduation is important to a lot of people because they are going to be the first in their family to graduate or because they’ve put a lot of effort in their schoolwork, and overall it’s a milestone that should be celebrated. It’s understandable for the seniors to feel sad about missing out on graduation and they shouldn’t be judged on that.  

One student writes on their instagram page “I thank God because I have my loved ones here with me. However, I’m also allowed to feel sad and angry…because things were taken away from me that I’ve been looking forward to for a great amount of time.”

Many students hope for a chance to get a graduation once it is safe to do so. 

Class of 2020 has a ringing question for those in charge: 

“Why can’t we be celebrated just how we imagined?”