Benet Academy graduation ceremony changed at last minute by health department

Benet Academy graduates had to make unexpected changes just before their well planned graduation ceremony at the Lisle school Thursday evening.

The 302 graduates were to be seated, albeit spaced at an appropriate social distance, on the football field for what should have been one of the most traditional ceremonies to take place anywhere for the class that had their senior year disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. But with cases rising rapidly in the suburbs, the health department canceled the ceremony an hour before the scheduled 6 p.m. start.

Instead, the graduates were handed their diplomas and yearbook at different ends of the spacious campus after being divided into three groups.

Most graduates came dressed for the ceremony with their families while others came in summer shorts and T-shirts. They chatted and laughed behind masks while waiting their turn to have their photo taken by family as they were handed the diploma, one at a time from a cardboard box. A professional photographer was also available to take a portrait on the lawn.

In the end, the ceremony took place like most others: carefully and with less fanfare than in past years.