Class of 2020 Commencement to be Held on Homecoming Weekend
Gettysburgian Editor-in-Chief (and Bullets Marching Band Drum Major) Benjamin Pontz ’20 and Magazine Editor (and Baritone Section Leader) Lauren Hand ’20
By Anna Cincotta, Editor-in-Chief
The Class of 2020 will celebrate their commencement ceremony on Sunday, September 26 during Homecoming weekend. In a message to the campus community, Commencement Coordinator Erin Eline Aumen noted that the decision was made with the hope that the fall will allow greater flexibility to gather safely, and with fewer COVID-19 restrictions.
Aumen also noted that the postponement will provide the new alumni with more activities that coincide with the planning for this year’s Homecoming weekend.
Members of last year’s graduating class indicated a sense of gratitude for the postponement.
“After a year full of plans that seemed ephemeral and chock full of disappointment, the prospect of a full-fledged graduation ceremony and Homecoming extravaganza this fall is genuinely exciting,” said Ben Pontz ‘20, the former Gettysburgian editor-in-chief who advocated a similar concept last spring along with Lauren Hand ‘20. “I thank President Iuliano and the Class of 2020 officers for their patience and for making what I think is an outstanding call, and I look forward to what will truly be a one-of-a-kind ceremony.”
“I am thrilled with the updated plan for graduation—how appropriate for our class, sent out into the world a little before we were ready, to celebrate together on Homecoming weekend,” Hand added. “A little less than a year ago, my good friend Ben and I agreed that we would love to do just that: come home to our Gettysburgian friends and family, some joyful day in the colors of fall. And I am more than happy to wait until it is perfectly safe for us to do so. I am grateful for the persistence of everyone involved, and I am humbled by the continued effort to celebrate the class of 2020.”
