These are uncertain times, to say the least. A global pandemic is sweeping the Earth and has killed many in its path. Systematic police brutality towards minorities without facing consequences has come to a head, also leaving death and destruction in its wake. There’s not much we can be certain about. All normal activities and routines have been halted. School is online, jobs have been lost, protests and riots are everywhere, some cities have curfews, the US military is fighting peaceful protesters in the streets, and most people are still sheltered at home although restrictions have been loosened in many places. So what happens to the usual rites of passage, like graduation ceremonies for college seniors? The momentous occasion has been either postponed, canceled, or will be celebrated in a limited online capacity. In order to find out more about the impact on college seniors graduating this month, I interviewed a senior at UC Santa Barbara about her thoughts about the current situations and her future.
Kasia Thao is graduating from UCSB this week on June 13th. After graduation, she’s planning on moving back to her family’s home in Fresno, California. She hopes to find a job in a city like Sacramento or come back to Santa Barbara while preparing for graduate school to become a school counselor. Because of the current pandemic and serious political unrest, her graduation is going to be virtual. It’s possible that, in the future, she will get an actual commencement ceremony. Her parents still hope to see her walk one day.
In the United States, the graduation ceremony is an important marker in a person’s life. It is often seen as the event that marks a person’s transition from adolescence to adulthood. The ceremony is meant to instill hope for the future in graduating seniors, continuing students, and parents. Even though the ceremony isn’t happening in person, finishing college still gives Kasia hope. She sometimes felt like she was never going to finish, but after her second year, she realized how fast life was going. Graduating always kept her motivated. The recent Black Lives Matter protests have also inspired her:
Kasia will be sad to leave Santa Barbara behind, especially the beaches and her job at Arts & Lectures.
Looking to the future, Kasia has some advice for students still in college: “understand that college is a life experience as well as an academic one. I think that students get caught up in the academics of college, but don’t realize how much they are personally growing. However, once you learn how to check in on yourself, your journey will turn out so much better”. I absolutely agree with this. During my first two years in college, I was completely focused on school work and it burned me out academically and emotionally. It caused me to isolate myself from other people and from hobbies and activities that I would have enjoyed. When I realized that my college years should not be completely focused on classes, I began to truly enjoy my experience and my life. Although times are changing, this advice for college years is still something that many can learn from.
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