Graduation is a time when students are filled with feelings of great accomplishment, nervousness and uncertainty about the future. It's also a time when students are filled with one more feeling - boredom.
Students are dreading graduation, and not only because after school is the real world, but because they know they're going to be bored out of their minds. The ceremony has gotten out of hand, and some changes need to be made. That's why I've come up with some suggestions on how the graduation process can be improved.
First of all, let's lose the caps and gowns (a fancy way to say robes and pointy hats). People are spending money on these items that they will only ever wear again if they go to grad school, and one graduation ceremony will deter any student from pursuing another.
According to a report on msnbc.com, schools and communities are pitching in to help graduating high school seniors pay for their caps and gowns, because with many parents losing their jobs, graduation expenses come as a luxury. So why not just do away with the robes and pointy hats?
Let everyone wear jeans or shorts (or maybe even jean shorts) and a T-shirt. It's something everyone has. No extra money will need to be spent, and parents will see graduating students as they truly are - college students, not a militia of organized creatures from another galaxy.
Another suggestion to save student and parent sanity is to shorten the length of the ceremony. States should pay the schools with the lowest average time based on the amount of students that walk. If Ball State University averaged one minute per student and Indiana University averaged one minute, 12 seconds, then Ball State would receive more state funding the next year. Money talks. Think about it.
With graduation ceremonies come graduation speakers, and we've seen the controversy that can arise from this. President Obama spoke at Notre Dame's commencement, only to answer to criticism about his stance on abortion and stem cell research.
This has an easy fix, however. Rather than having keynote speakers, hire a well-known DJ from the area, and have a dance party after everyone has walked. Once graduation is over, people are generally looking to party, so let's all do our part to make it easier.
Plus, it's easier to dance without the robe on.
Noah Glick is a senior advertising major. His views do not necessarily agree with those of the newspaper.
Write to Nick at nmglick@gmail.com
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