Weather won't be a worry for 2008 graduates of Verona Area High School when their June 8 commencement ceremony is held for the first time inside Epic Systems' massive auditorium.
Likewise, a ticket-limit for graduates is also history, as the roughly 5,300-seat "Epicenter" that opened last August will easily fit the 2,000-plus people expected at the 1 p.m. ceremony.
The new venue breaks the old tradition of holding graduation outside at the VAHS football stadium or - in case of rain - inside the school's gymnasium, which was getting too small to fit a growing number of graduates and their families.
The potential for a
space crunch in the gym each year had forced school officials to limit graduates to six tickets apiece, which wasn't always enough for seniors hoping to have extended family and friends watch them get their diplomas.
This year, the only concern is over parking space, as Epic hasn't yet completed its second underground parking garage. So this year's crop of roughly 340 graduates will meet an hour before the ceremony at the VAHS Performing Arts Center, where they'll line up in alphabetical order before boarding school buses that will shuttle them to Epic.
Those shuttle buses will also carry staff members, reducing the parking needed at Epic by about 400 vehicles, school officials said.
Verona police aren't anticipating traffic jams, as the crowd will mirror the daily influx of roughly 1,800 employees at the software company, said Sgt. Dave Dresser. However, attendees will want to steer clear of West Verona Avenue and South Main Street, portions of which will be closed Sunday until after the 1 p.m. start because of the Hometown Days parade.
The parade usually does not conflict with graduation ceremonies, but the dates line up once every few years.
VAHS principal Kelly Meyers said last week that some of the ceremony's details still needed to be ironed out, such as where the band will sit. But she did say the event will include video footage shown on Epic's IMAX-like projection screen, and she's also glad that air conditioning will be an option if it's hot outside.
While Epic has a notoriously lax dress code for employees, the same won't be true for graduates.
Shorts, T-shirts, flip-flops and any other "extremely informal attire" could exclude seniors from crossing the stage, Meyers said.
Epic waived a rental fee for the event, though the school will have to pay for some as-yet undetermined costs for Epic staff to open the building and handle audio and video duties, Meyers said last week. VAHS will also save money by not needing custodians to set up chairs and stages.
A mandatory rehearsal for students will be held Friday, June 6, at 8:30 a.m. in the PAC.
