Some universities in Illinois are inviting the class of 2020 back for belated in-person commencements.
The gesture aims to make up for having to cancel graduation ceremonies last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The list includes the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Illinois State University, University of Illinois at Chicago, Northern Illinois University, Southern Illinois University, Eastern Illinois University and others, the Chicago Sun-Times reports.
“Honestly, it was really sad,” 2020 graduate Annie Czerwinski told the Sun-Times of having to miss her graduation ceremony last year. “I had been looking forward to commencement for so long.”
She added that she’s “really excited” to go back to the Urbana-Champaign campus to celebrate her graduation alongside the class of 2021.
Officials at the universities that are holding in-person graduation ceremonies say that they’re able to do so with COVID-19 guidelines in place, including social-distancing and mask-wearing.
Everyone age 16 and older is eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine in Illinois, as of earlier this month.
State data show that more than 8,942,000 doses of the vaccine have been administered in Illinois, the Illinois Department of Public Health reported Tuesday (April 27). Illinois has reported more than 1,325,000 total cases as of Tuesday.
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