Gilford to hold drive-in graduation at Gunstock

GILFORD — Seniors at Gilford High School will be able to graduate with some pomp despite the circumstances of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Gilford School Board approved a plan Monday to hold the ceremony at Gunstock in which graduates and their families will be in their cars, Superintendent Kirk Beitler said.

The ceremony will take place in the 5½-acre parking lot at the base of Gunstock’s ski slopes on Saturday, June 5, with a rain date of the following day.

As the name of each graduate is announced he or she will be able to leave their car with their family members for a photograph, Beitler explained.

The ceremony will include the traditional valedictorian and salutatorian addresses, as well as remarks by a guest speaker. Beitler said the more specific details of the ceremony were still being worked out by high school Principal Anthony Sperazzo and others at the school.

Beitler said the significance of the commencement ceremony for seniors is huge.

“I still remember my high school graduation,” he said. “For some of these students it’s the last large schooling event of their lives.”

Beitler said the decision was made to hold the ceremony at Gunstock in part because it has a parking lot large enough to accommodate the cars of all the guests. Moreover, he said, having graduates and their families remain in their cars means that school officials will not have to monitor social distancing.

Laconia High School’s graduation is scheduled to take place on Saturday, June 12. Plans call for the ceremony to be held on the school’s football field — the Bank of New Hampshire Stadium.

In discussing the plans with the Laconia School Board last month, Superintendent Steve Tucker emphasized that what the ceremony will look like and how it will be conducted would depend on what social distancing restrictions are in place in mid-June.

Calls to the Shaker Regional School District and Inter-Lakes School District requesting information about graduation plans at Belmont and Inter-Lakes high schools were not returned Thursday.