Huntley High School graduation moving to Sears Centre

Huntley High School will join a slew of local high schools in hosting graduation at the Sears Centre Arena in Hoffman Estates, beginning with the 2012 ceremony.

The Huntley Area District 158 school board on Thursday unanimously approved a contract with the venue, agreeing to pay $24,261 to rent the space.

Board members said the larger location is needed to accommodate the ever-increasing graduation classes and their relatives and friends who want to attend.

Board member Paul Troy said at this year’s graduation ceremony, some audience members were forced to watch the ceremony from two remote locations via video feed. There was, however, no sound.

“The size of the graduating class just keeps increasing year-after-year,” Troy said. “We need more room just for the graduates.”

The costs will not come from the district’s budget. An activity account will be set up and ticket sales will cover the costs, school board member Tony Quagliano reiterated Thursday.

“We don’t need to go into the budget,” Quagliano said. “It’s cost-neutral to the district.”

Quagliano estimated the district spends about $10,000 to hold graduation at the high school, which covers expenses such as traffic police, set up and cleaning crews and air conditioning. Furthermore, other incidental factors such as the weather won’t affect the ceremony, Quagliano added.

“That’s all taken care of for us,” Quagliano said. “It’s a fairly central location that is easily accessible. I have been to graduation there and we had a party of 15 people. I went as an uncle. I would not have had the opportunity to go if it was at a high school.”

School officials said each graduating student would receive three to four complimentary tickets before charging between $8 and $10 for subsequent tickets.

In addition, the district could receive a $2,500 discount if an event scheduled for the evening of June 2, 2012, goes ahead as planned.

Huntley District 158 will join schools from neighboring districts that hold graduation at the Sears Centre Arena, including Community Unit District 300, which hosts three high school graduations.