East Class of 2020
Events and News
Celebrating YOU!
Graduation from high school is one of life’s great milestones. We know that many of you have been anticipating and planning for this date for years. The staff at East High School has always strived to make graduation and the commencement ceremony special experiences that recognize the hard work, dedication and achievements of every East senior, and this year is no exception. We have had discussions, both formal and informal, with staff, students and parents since it was first anticipated that current circumstances could mandate a new approach to graduation.
The goal of our planning has been to provide a memorable and appropriate senior spring experience. While this letter addresses more than just commencement, we know that this is the primary event on everyone’s mind. To ensure a healthy and safe event for all involved, we need to follow the mandated social distancing guidelines, so an alternative to the tradition of gathering everyone close together in one auditorium has been chosen. WDSE is working with East and Denfeld to create professional productions to celebrate your graduation. Teams of staff and student leaders have been working tirelessly to formulate these plans and make sure all necessary details are taken care of.
Our hope is that this experience will accomplish everything else that makes graduation special. We will celebrate with you, to the extent that we safely can, during the Senior Drive Through. We will have speeches, music, and all traditional aspects of the ceremony included in the production. Most importantly, we will give every senior the honor of being on stage and recognized for all that they have achieved. with a few family members here to cheer you on. Creating this production with WDSE will result in a celebratory, professional experience you’ll be able to share with your friends and family no matter where they are!
There is a lot of information contained in this letter. Please read carefully and save for later reference. Hopefully most questions you may have are addressed here.
QUICK ACCESS TO LINKS - Keep reading below for all details. You'll find these links in multiple places because they're important!
Senior Drive Through Day
Wednesday, May 13, 2020, 09:00 AM
Duluth East High School, North 40th Avenue East, Duluth, MN, USA
Details for Drive Through Day
Sign up for a 30 minute time slot (30 seniors per slot). This link is on our website and has been emailed to our seniors and their parents/guardians.
Be in the main lot at your scheduled time, you will be signaled, one car at a time, to head down Greyhound Drive. You’ll need to remain in your car. Please don’t have anyone in your car who doesn’t live in the same home with you.
You are invited to decorate your car, we’ll be here to cheer you on and greet you, and will deliver numerous items as you stop down Greyhound Drive! We’ll have music playing, decorations, and gifts for you!
There will be SIX stops down Greyhound Drive, make sure you stop at each one (unless you didn’t order a yearbook).
Tent #1: Materials Turn In: Bring any textbooks, library books, or other school owned items, including athletic equipment and uniforms, that you have not been using and won't need for the rest of the year. You’ll be able to turn them in here. DO NOT TURN IN ANYTHING YOU WILL STILL NEED TO USE DURING THE LAST FEW WEEKS OF SCHOOL!
Tent #2: Caps and Gowns and Media Release Form (You’ll need to bring the completed form back for your photo session)
Tent #3: All Night Grad Party Gift and Drawing Prizes
Tent #4: Time Capsule - Do you remember writing a letter to yourself in 8th and/or 9th grade? We’ll distribute those we have back to you here!
Tent #5: Yearbook! If you didn’t order a yearbook but you still want one, contact Ms. Peterson at kirstin.peterson@isd709.org
Tent #6: Cupcakes and Honors Achievements - EVERYONE GETS A CUPCAKE!
All awards that would have normally been handed out on Honors Night, as well as other local scholarship certificates, will be handed out here to those students. Varsity letters and other awards, too!
This will include NHS Cords, Gold Tassels and pins for students who earned a 3.6 GPA or higher after Semester 1 of this year,
Students who had a cumulative GPA of 4.0 at the end of Semester 1 will also receive an Honor Medal. These are still in production and weren’t scheduled to be here until May 25th. We’ll have some to borrow for your cap and gown photo until we can get the real medal to you.
Commencement Details (Sign up for your photo session!)
You will receive a media release when you pick up your cap and gown. If this form is not filled out by a parent or guardian, or the student if they are over 18, you may not appear in the production!
The Commencement production will be aired on 8.2 Explore Channel - likely on a Tuesday night or a Sunday morning. WDSE is currently planning their production schedule for June and will give us the exact date and time ASAP. We will inform you as quickly as possible! This date and time should be finalized by May 14.
When the production is done, you’ll be able to purchase a copy on DVD, stream online, and share with family and friends no matter where they are.
There will be many components, photos, music, and videos that we wouldn’t normally be able to incorporate in a traditional on-stage ceremony, combined with all of our traditional elements that are a part of East commencement each year.
Cap and Gown Photos on Stage
In order to give WDSE time to produce and edit this, we need to have components to them quickly, including a professional photograph of you, on stage, in your cap and gown, with your diploma.
**Note that during your photo session you’ll get an empty diploma folder. The actual diploma will be mailed to you or available for pick up when all requirements have been met at the end of the year. With the diploma, we also plan to have the printed Commencement Program with names, your 5x7 Cap and Gown photo, and the Honors Program Book for students receiving honors.
We’ll have the stage set for fantastic photos. You will sign up for a 5 minute time slot for your photo session. Families with multiple seniors, if no consecutive slots are left for you, please call the office for assistance. We recommend signing up for one slot for each student. We'll do our best to make that as convenient as we can for you!
Nate Rendulich will be here for all 5 days taking professional photos.
We will be purchasing one 5x7 copy of the photo used for commencement for each student that will be mailed to you when it’s ready.
Rendulich Photography will open an online store for you to purchase additional copies of any photos taken that day.
When you arrive, you will enter through the back side of the auditorium, near the garage door to the left of the East main entrance. Someone will be watching for you to greet you.Wait at the staging area for your turn to walk across the stage. You’ll get an individual photo taken and others if you choose.
You will be able to bring up to 4 guests with you as long as they live in the same home with you. While we initially thought we would have to limit to two guests, this allows students with two households the chance to bring their parents/guardians from both homes.
These guests can stand in the aisles of the auditorium to take pictures or video of this time. You can also get your photo taken professionally with them to mark the occasion, including simulating handing you the diploma!
We have to limit time in the auditorium to 5 minutes per student.
You will not be allowed to go anywhere else in the school other than the auditorium and entrance foyer.
When you exit out the foyer you are invited to sign a banner that will appear in the production and hopefully re-appear at your reunions. We'll have permanent markers here that we will wipe down between uses or you are invited to bring your own. It will provide another great photo opportunity in front of the Greyhounds logo.
Doors will be propped open to reduce contact. Please be prepared to follow all social distancing guidelines for the safety of all of our students, family, and staff members.
If you are uncomfortable coming to the school to have your photograph taken, or unable to come for some other reason, please contact us. We will discuss how to get your photo included in the production. If transportation is an issue we may be able to help with that, too!
Advantage Emblem Senior Store Open
Seniors' Last Day is May 29
Yard Signs Still Available
Additional Event Details
Friday, May 15, 7 pm: Prom!
Duluth East and Denfeld Prom committees are working together (and have now included Hermantown, Proctor, Cloquet, Marshall, Superior, and more) with Mix 108 to sponsor a Regional Prom this year. Each school will host their own social media events, but Mix 108 will broadcast music, have special events, and have great giveaways that night!
Honors Night
Our traditional Honors Night ceremonies have been canceled for Denfeld and East.
East will be publishing a full color book that will highlight our honorees. We will recognize all of the academic awards, department awards, and local scholarships and awards that we traditionally recognize, but it will now be in a keepsake book for you. Books will be mailed to you as soon as we are able to get them professionally printed, hopefully by the end of the school year. We will also be sharing recognition via social media for many of these awards.
Baccalaureate
Traditional Baccalaureate Ceremonies have been canceled for Denfeld and East this year.
Our local religious organizations are making their own plans to honor and celebrate the seniors in their communities.
Elementary Walk
Watch for messages from your Elementary teachers and staff, and our Little Greyhounds. They’ll be popping up in our social media and may appear in our commencement production!
Senior Picnic
Canceled for now. Your student leaders have asked us to hold this picnic when restrictions are lifted to give you this same chance to gather, reminisce, and physically sign yearbooks. We can’t give you a date yet, but we’ll keep you posted!
All Night Grad Party: From the Volunteer Committee (this is not a school function)
Dear Class of 2020, Congratulations on your graduation from Duluth East High School! We wish you all the best of luck next year. The All Night Grad Party committee regrets that they have to cancel the party this year due to COVID-19. If you registered and paid for the ANGP you will receive your money back soon. If you have any questions, please email the committee at eastgradparty@gmail.com. We will see you all at the Drive Through! Sincerely, The ANGP CommitteeMedia Requests
We have had a number of media agencies reach out asking for access to you, our graduating class. If you are interested in participating in virtual interviews, submitting videos, appearing in articles, or sharing photos, please fill out this form. Make sure you have parent or guardian approval if you are under 18.
Marking The Last Day
We are working with district and city officials on a few special opportunities to mark the “last day” with you. Watch for more information to follow!
We know that you likely have many other ideas about what you would like us to do to mark these events. Trust that we have evaluated an incredible amount of options, and have chosen these formats with all guidelines and restrictions in mind. While we know that none of this is ideal, and we would definitely all prefer to be together to celebrate traditionally, we ask that you respect the work done by our staff and student leadership teams. We thank them for their continued time and effort. Hosting these events in this way is very time and cost intensive. None of this would be possible without a lot of support and work and we are so appreciative of all who have been part of planning and who will be part of organizing and running them as we move forward.
We hope to see you all soon!
- Senior Events Planning Team
Principals: Mrs. Seboe, Mr. Rock, and Mr. Flaa
Darcy Motschenbacher
Senior Class Advisors: Mr. Upton and Ms. Florestano
Counselors: Ms. Savre, Ms. Forsman, and Mr. Gagne
Students: Exec Board, Association, and the East POV Advisory Council (this group includes student leaders from Exec, Association, Key Club, Sources of Strength, Boundless, GSA, Circle of Friends, Yearbook, Hound Pack, Bleacher Captains, Student Forum, and Social Justice Club), Prom Committee
Teachers: Mr. Zwak, Mr. Kyes, Ms. Daly, Ms. Westholm, Mr. Peterson, Mr. Larson, and many more!
All Night Grad Party Committee
WDSE