For most of the Spring 2021
graduating class, it has been
over a year since entering the
Big House for a football game
or anything else — other than
maybe to receive a vaccine. On
Saturday, May 1, however, the
University
of
Michigan
gave
graduates
the
opportunity
to
spend the last moments of their
college
career
watching
the
virtual commencement ceremony
with their peers inside Michigan
Stadium at noon.
The University said it required
students who opted-in to the
in-person
commencement
viewing to be adequately masked
and socially distant, restrictions
that were essentially not enforced
once students entered the stands
Saturday. Graduates also had to
have
a
verified
ResponsiBLUE
screening
and
testing
result,
which, for students who have
not tested positive for COVID-
19 in the last 90 days, includes
receiving a COVID-19 test at a
University testing location.
Students who did not feel
comfortable
attending
the
in-person event or who wanted
to watch the commencement
ceremony with family and friends
had the option of attending
virtually. The recorded ceremony
remains available for viewing.
Despite
another
pandemic
graduation celebrated with new,
socially
distanced
traditions
— including a massive mural
on E. Washington St. — several
graduates and parents were upset
by the lack of a more conventional
commencement experience.
Following
the
University’s
initial
announcement
in
February
indicating
Spring
Commencement would be virtual,
a group of students and parents
stood in front of the Michigan
Union in early March to protest
for what they envisioned could be
a safe, in-person event.
Along
with
the
protest,
a
student-curated
petition
with
over 5,000 signatures urged the
University to offer an optional
in-person graduation ceremony.
The petition claimed that the
Big
House’s
seating
capacity
of 107,601 people would allow
for all interested graduates to
participate,
even
with
social
distancing protocols.
When
U-M
first
indicated
that commencement would be
virtual, the state’s limitation was
250 people for outdoor events.
By
contrast,
when
the
plans
for a hybrid graduation were
announced over a month later,
the state of Michigan’s restrictions
held capacity at outdoor events to
1,000 people if all attendees were
six feet apart and wearing masks.
In light of the controversy
surrounding the virtual graduation
format, University President Mark
Schlissel announced the May 1
opt-in commencement celebration
at the Big House at the Board of
Regents’ meeting on March 25.
LSA graduate Justin Pollack,
who attended the celebration,
expressed frustration with the
hybrid format but also said he
understood
the
University’s
decision
to
hold
graduation
virtually.
“It’s
the
closest
thing
that I could get to in-person
graduation,” Pollack said. “The
situation
in
Michigan
three
weeks ago wouldn’t have looked
good for an in-person graduation,
and if you did change (the
graduation format) then I guess
there would have been a lot of
logistical difficulties. So, I get it.
It’s disappointing, but like, I’m
glad that we have something.”
As
student
body
president
Amanda
Kaplan
introduced
Schlissel to the crowd, he was met
with a litany of boos. Despite the
jeers, Schlissel congratulated the
class of 2021, citing their resilience
and
optimism
throughout
an
unprecedented year.
Thursday, May 6, 2021
INDEX
Vol. CXXIX, No. 112
© 2020 The Michigan Daily
NEWS ....................................
OPINION ...............................
ARTS.......................................
SPORTS..................................
SPORTS
NFL Wolverines
Michigan’s recent NFL
Draft success continues
with eight players
selected
>> SEE PAGE 8
NEWS
R.I.P. Reggie Bee
Campus community
remembers remarkable life
of beloved campus corgi
>> SEE PAGE 2
OPINION
Afghanistan Exit
Democracy cannot be
built on the back of foreign
intervention
>> SEE PAGE 5
ARTS
Academy Awards
The Daily’s Arts writers went
behind the scenes of the
Oscars for the first time — on
Zoom
>> SEE PAGE 6
SPORTS
LAX History
Men’s lacrosse team
upsets Ohio State en
route to first ever Big Ten
Tournament seminfinal
>> SEE PAGE 9
inside
2
4
6
8
2021 grads celebrate commencement in
the Big House
ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM
RONI KANE AND SHANNON STOCKING
Summer News Editor & Managing News Editor
michigandaily.com
Pioneer
High School
investigated
for racial
hostility
On Feb. 22, six Ann Arbor
City
Council
members
and
Mayor
Christopher
Taylor
sent
a letter to Ann Arbor Public
Schools, advocating for a return
to
in-person
classes.
Though
the letter could be perceived
as
unconventional,
as
school
decisions beyond the allocation
of funding are usually considered
outside the council’s jurisdiction,
the council members and mayor
wrote
that
they
were
simply
responding to their constituents’
needs. Specifically, the letter cited
“BIPOC
communities”
suffering
an “unjust disparity in loss” during
the pandemic.
When local Black Lives Matter
activist and founder of Survivors
Speak Trische’ Duckworth read the
letter, she questioned that claim.
Where
were
councilmembers,
she wondered, when dozens of
community members came out
to demonstrate against alleged
racism at Ann Arbor Pioneer High
School (AAPS) — when Black
parents told them they needed
their support?
“At a time where they were
needed
most
in
the
district,
when … there was so much racial
unrest within the district against
students, they would not step in,”
Duckworth
told
The
Michigan
Daily in February.
Read more at michigandaily.com
Read more at michigandaily.com
JULIANNA MORANO
Daily Staff Reporter
EMMA MATI/Daily
Graduates from the class of 2021 gather in-pperson to view the virtual commnecmement ceremonies at the Big
House Saturday afternoon.
BECCA MAHON/Daily
Ann Arbor Public Schools opened
an investigation into alleged racial
discimination at Pioneer High School,