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​Graduating Students In US Ride Jet Skis To Collect Diplomas From Boat

​Graduating Students In US Ride Jet Skis To Collect Diplomas From Boat

Seniors graduating from Somerset Island Prep took to the seas to graduate, riding up to the principal on jet skis

Jess Hardiman

Jess Hardiman

Graduating students in Florida received their diplomas the 2020 way, having maintained social distancing measures by collecting them from their principal using jet skis.

Students across the globe are missing out on the traditional graduation ceremony they'd envisaged, with public gatherings banned in many places to help stop the spread of coronavirus.

But seniors graduating from Somerset Island Prep charter high school in Key West took to the seas to graduate, riding up to the principal, who had been stationed on a boat with a grabber to hand out the diplomas.

Florida Charter School Alliance/@FlCharter

One-by-one, each student hopped on a jet ski and travelled out to their principal, taking their diploma from the long grabber so as to ensure they maintained an appropriate distance.

While they all got to wear the traditional cap and gown combo, they also donned this year's ultimate accessory: face masks.

ABC

Underneath their robes, they also had life jackets to ensure their safety as they whizzed out onto the water.

Tom Rompella, principal of Somerset Island Prep, said in a statement from the school: "This final ceremony for our seniors represents the same theme that has played out throughout the entirety of their time at Island Prep: that no barrier is too large to overcome and that through creativity and hard work we can overcome any challenge."

Many students elsewhere have had to be similarly creative with their graduation this year.

The Business Breakthrough University in Japan deployed 'newme' robots for its ceremony, which was held at the Hotel Grand Palace in Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, last month.

This is not how students envisaged their graduation day.
BBT University

The robots were controlled remotely by students at the ceremony, with each of the self-isolating students appearing on a small screen via video link.

In total, four students used the robots to collect their certificates from president of the university, Omae Kenichi, while the rest of the graduates took part in the ceremony via video call app Zoom.

The novel and innovative ceremony was the idea of Professor Shugo Yanaka, Dean of Global Business Administration at the university.

He said: "While new coronavirus measures are required, the introduction of avatars can realise a warm online graduation ceremony. We hope this initiative will be helpful to educational institutions who are having difficulty holding graduation ceremonies and entrance ceremonies."

One of the students added: "When I enrolled, I never thought I would operate an avatar to attend the graduation ceremony."

Featured Image Credit: Florida Charter School Alliance/@FlCharter

Topics: News, Florida, US News