Letter to Community on Rock Hill Schools Graduation Decorum

Greetings to Rock Hill Citizens:

In school year 1998-1999, Superintendent Phillip McDaniel charged a committee with improving the overall climate at high school graduations in Rock Hill. The 21-person committee, comprised of parents, students, teachers, guidance counselors, administrators, and Winthrop and Rock Hill police representatives, examined the lack of decorum at previous graduations and developed guidelines to be used for district graduations. Those recommendations were intended to create a dignified atmosphere in which families and friends could hear the names of the graduates and all graduates would receive the honor and respect due them. Clover, Fort Mill, and York schools, also using Winthrop facilities, wanted the same uniform guidelines for all schools using the facility. The guidelines below were agreed upon by all York County high schools to create a more dignified atmosphere, and the majority of the public has fully supported the guidelines.

Despite the controversies of June 2008 graduation ceremonies, the county high school communities reaffirm the guidelines that were established nearly ten years ago and ask the community to join with us in maintaining the dignity of high school graduations by following the guidelines below:

• Admittance is by ticket only
• Attendees should wear appropriate attire (no shorts, tank tops, t-shirts)
• Spectators should not leave their seats to take pictures during the program
• Spectators should hold their applause and not stand or shout until all diplomas are awarded

To assist the schools in monitoring and maintaining the safe, orderly, and disturbance-free atmosphere of the graduation ceremony, uniformed police officers have been asked to remove any spectator who disrupts the ceremonies and may charge him/her with disturbing a school activity.

Graduation is one of the most important milestones in our students' lives. We want to honor our graduating seniors with a ceremony that is dignified and allows every graduate's name to be heard, and we believe these guidelines are important in setting the appropriate climate for such a ceremony. As faculty members, parents, students, and other community members, we endorse the guidelines above and request the same endorsement from the community. Thank you for honoring our graduates in this way.

All graduations will be held on Saturday, June 6, in the Winthrop Coliseum at the following times:

• 10 a.m. - Northwestern High School
• 2 p.m. - South Pointe High School
• 6p.m. - Rock Hill High School

For persons who cannot attend graduation, the ceremony for each of the above schools will be shown on Cable 18 at the designated time.