New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced this week that upstate regions could begin to have school graduations that are restricted to several guidelines, but a handful of schools in the area want to push the boundaries further.
According to Rensselaer County Executive Steve McLaughlin, at least three schools in the upstate region will attempt to do their graduations “on premise” and in person.
Regions of upstate New York are entering phase two of their reopening plans on Monday, resuming some operations for the first time since other parts of the state, including New York City, became the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic back in March.
“I don’t see any issue with holding a high school graduation on a football field. There’s no issue with it, and it’s no different than being at a beach,” McLaughlin told the Washington Examiner.
“Are you going to tell me 50,000 people can be in the street, and you can’t hold high school graduation on a football field? This is insanity,” he said, referencing the massive nightly protests in New York City.
According to the guidance on the New York state government website, the Cuomo administration is allowing outdoor in-person graduations but is currently limiting the size of the events. Other acceptable alternatives include drive-thru or drive-in graduations, as well as virtual and individualized ceremonies.
Although Cuomo began to reopen the rural and mountainous regions of New York before New York City, whose phase one begins Monday, McLaughlin argues Cuomo is not going by any particular plan.
“People wanted to camp. We were getting screamed at every day by residents. Where’s the decision? It took [the Cuomo administration] a month, and they wouldn’t make a decision,” McLaughlin said.
