By AUBRIE GEORGE
The Moorestown Sun
High school is coming an end for the Moorestown High School Class of 2010, and to mark this pinnacle moment in seniors’ lives, a graduation ceremony has been planned for June 17 at the high school’s football stadium.
The commencement ceremony is scheduled to begin with the entrance of the graduates at 6:30 p.m., and is anticipated to continue until about 8 p.m.
To attend the ceremony, guests must have a ticket. Eight tickets per graduate are being distributed to students during graduation practice this week.
Four of the tickets will allow family or friends to be seated in a reserved section located on the track or admission to the Moorestown Athletic Center gym in the event that rain causes the ceremony to be held indoors.
The four additional tickets will allow family or friends general admission and seating in available bleachers or admission to satellite locations within the school to observe the ceremony in the event of an indoor ceremony.
All seating will be granted on a first-come, first-served basis with the appropriate tickets.
The stadium is scheduled to open at 5:30 p.m. for seating.
The MHS concert band will give a pre-ceremonial performance at 6:15 p.m.
In the event of rain, the ceremony will be relocated to the Moorestown Athletic Center gym.
If the weather is uncertain the day of graduation, a decision about location will be made as close to the ceremony as possible. School officials said the intention is to hold an outdoor ceremony without endangering graduates or their families.
Following the ceremony, students will report back to the gym to receive their diploma certificates.
Then, students and chaperones participating in this year’s Project Graduation event will report to the high school media center.
This year marks the 22nd annual Project Graduation for graduating Moorestown High School students.
The event will begin immediately following the graduation ceremony and will continue until about 7 a.m. the next morning.
Graduates and volunteer chaperones are transported directly from the Moorestown High School media center parking lot to a series of secret locations. The graduates are kept busy through the night with food, games, events and prizes.
Project Graduation is funded largely by donations from the community and is organized and carried out through a partnership between Moorestown schools, the Moorestown Education Foundation, The Moorestown Home and School Association, the community and the Community Alliance on Substance Awareness in Moorestown (CASA), CASA co-chair, Kim Jones, said.
Jones said Project Graduation provides a safe and fun alternative for students on graduation night.
“The intent is to keep them safe and away from partying and alcohol and drugs that night,” Jones said.
The event is popular and well-attended among students, CASA co-chair Dorrie Kozuck, who is also the Student Assistance Counselor at Moorestown High School said.
Last year the event drew about 98 percent of the gradating class.
“It gives them a big night to remember,” Kozuck said. “It’s their last time to be together with their class.”
In addition, Jones said community support for the event is overwhelming.
“The community supports this in an amazing way,” Jones said. “We probably get about 60 volunteers between sending the students off at the high school and on site getting things ready.”
Students were able to purchase tickets for project graduation for $10 each at a variety of locations in the school prior to the event.
