Crane Country Day School held virtual graduation ceremonies this past week for its kindergarten and eighth-grade classes in individualized celebrations, proving you don’t need to be face-to-face to be seen.
“The kindergarten year is so magical and I wanted to preserve that wonder in a meaningful way,” said Gayle Sandell, Lower School head.
Sandell recreated that magic by way of custom “explosion boxes” she made by hand for each of the 21 kindergarten students.
The unassuming box unfolds, revealing photos of the student captured throughout the year, the lines they recited in their school play, their memorized poems and personal vignettes, handwriting exercises and even a miniaturized version of the book they wrote in class.
In all, each box contained 16 pictures and 12 writing and art samples. It’s a keepsake crafted with love and patience by Sandell, who said she spent six weeks on the project.
The kindergarten graduation is marked by the memorization and recitation of a poem by each student. Teachers introduce the student, offering personal insights gleaned throughout the year. This year, instead of presenting from the Crane stage, students watched a pre-recorded compilation video from the comfort of their homes, tuning in together at 10 a.m. June 10.
The big reveal came after the video, when families signed into Google Meet to simultaneously open their surprise boxes. Other goodies in the bundle included a bottle of sparkling cider individually imprinted with student’s graduation photo, and a puzzle symbolizing the kindergartners’readiness for new challenges and celebrating their growth.
Since no graduation is complete without a little dancing, a virtual dance party ensued.
“I didn’t want students to have their last memory of Crane feel remote,” Sandell said. “I wanted families to know that we saw their child, that we celebrate their achievements and that we remember all of the positive moments they had on campus.”
The eighth-grade class has shared innumerable memories on Crane’s fields and in its classrooms, yet they also shared the challenge of being displaced, and the disappointment of finishing their final months remotely.
“I really admire our eighth-grade class,” said Peggy Smith, Upper School head. In the past three years, these students have endured two major academic disruptions, including closures due to COVID and the relocation to a downtown campus in the aftermath of the Montecito debris flow.
“I’m sorry that the eighth-graders didn’t get the full Crane experience, yet they have gained an independence and resourcefulness they might not have otherwise developed without the challenges,” Smith said.
For many, the highlight of eighth grade is celebrating the culmination of their years together at the graduation ceremony, where teachers read personal vignettes they’ve written about each student, commemorating the course of their years at Crane. Of the 35 graduates, 17 have been at Crane since kindergarten.
Students still got to hear these tributes over a Zoom ceremony, simulcast in Spanish and English, on June 12.
“It was sad not to be there in person, but Crane did a really good job of making graduation exciting,” said eighth-grader Drew Levinson, whose family of five gathered on two computers to watch the ceremony.
To get students in the spirit, Crane teachers delivered surphise, personally engraved gift boxes the morning of graduation. The boxes contained Silly String and crepe paper; diploma; class photo; vignette book; personal cards from the headmaster, Upper School Head and board chair; and snacks including school-colored green and white M&Ms.
“In many ways, I felt that this ceremony was even more personal than the traditional graduation,” said Jill Levinson, mother of Drew Levinson. “The ceremony was obviously more casual in our home and even though we missed being with other people, we really had the opportunity to experience it together as a family.”
In fact, families were integral to the event; as students’ names were called, the parents presented their child with their diploma. Levinson said that as other students were presented, or received awards, she could text parents in real time congratulating them, and Drew did the same with his friends.
“We could cheer, laugh and show enthusiasm as opposed to sitting quietly as observers,” said Levinson. “It definitely felt more participatory and more raucous than our daughter’s Crane graduation four years ago.”
That was due in large part to the festive victory lap car parade around the school later in the day, where teachers, staff and the Crane coyote mascot cheered, hooted and blasted confetti. Students also received alumni bags with a memories video from their time at Crane, a beach towel and beanie, and home-baked chocolate-chip cookie bars, with gluten-free treats for those with dietary restrictions.
“It was really fun to see my teachers again,” said Drew. “Especially as they were blowing horns, screaming our names and throwing candy into our car.”
“It didn’t feel like any of the Crane traditions were missing,” Jill Levinson said. “In fact, I would say that the school not only didn’t leave anything out, they actually enhanced the graduation and made it extremely personal for each student.”