6/12/20
Good afternoon BHS Class of 2020, Underclassmen/Guardians, Seniors' Parents/Guardians, and Faculty and Staff!
We're truly on the final stretch of the 2019-20 school year, and this year's graduation ceremony is only a day away! Let's kick off the recognitions with the following links, reminders, and invitations!
Remote Senior Awards Ceremony - Premiering Live on YouTube at 7pm - TONIGHT!
The Graduating Class of 2020 will be recognized for their class-specific achievements, scholarships, and contributions to our school and local communities tonight at 7pm. We are working to load the ceremony onto YouTube as a Premier Event, which means that when it is available at 7, it will essentially be "livestreamed" for the first time. After the first showing, the evening's presentations will be available and you will be able to skip ahead/back.
So - come together (remotely) with family, friends, and BHS professionals as these presentations go "Live" this evening! The YouTube link, which is being shared with the Class of 2020, those students guardians, and Shaker Regional Faculty and Staff can be found HERE.
Please note:
If we happen to experience technical difficulties with the YouTube Premier function, we will work to share a Google Link to the ceremony shortly after 7pm!
Reminders of Expectations and Protocols for Tomorrow's Graduation Ceremony:
The Graduate's vehicle may arrive at Belmont High School beginning at 5pm; the graduation ceremony is set to begin at 6pm on the Lower Soccer Field of BHS.
Each graduate is limited to one vehicle on campus. The vehicle must have the parking pass (found in the resource bags you received this week) to come onto campus.
Each vehicle may have the graduate and up to three attending guests.
Each Graduate has been assigned a parking space at BHS (as shown in the form in the Senior Packet). The vehicle needs to find and park in the designated parking space.
Grads and Guests are to remain in their vehicles until instructed to get out by a member of BHS Faculty/Staff who will be serving as ushers.
Each graduate and all attending guests (again, up to three guests per graduate) must wear masks from the time they exit their vehicle until they are back in their vehicles after the ceremony. The only exception to this is that the graduate will be allowed to remove his/her mask when in the designated photography area, after having crossed the stage. Please remember that no guest(s) should leave their grid space, even to take pictures; a professional photographer will be taking images that will be available at a later date.
All Graduates and Guests - as well as faculty and staff - are required to maintain at least a 6' social distancing from other Graduates, Guests, and Faculty/Staff. This includes refraining from hugs, high-fives, etc.
Graduates and guests are to stay with their usher on their way to the Lower Soccer Field. Your usher can answer questions and/or provide additional information that you may be looking for!
Graduates and Guests are to remain in their assigned grid space throughout the ceremony. At no point, other than when the Graduate is to rise and walk along the designated travel path and come to the stage to receive his/her diploma, will the student leave the designated Grid Space.
Graduates and Guests will follow the directions of school personnel who are leading/ushering the graduation ceremony.
After the ceremony, Graduates and Guests must wait in their assigned grid space until they are ushered back to their vehicle.
In the event that a Graduate or Guest acts outside of these communicated guidelines, the ceremony will be paused and the student and his/her guests will be told to leave the premises. In the event that compliance becomes a concern, the graduation ceremony would be stopped, graduates/guests will be ushered to their vehicles, and any student who did not have an opportunity to receive his/her diploma will receive this in the mail at a later time.
"Congregating" on school grounds, either before or after the event, is prohibited.
When post-production editing of videos/photographs is complete, students will receive these files (at a later date).
Graduates and Guests are to "Self-Screen'' prior to determining whether or not they are physically well enough to attend the event. The following would preclude an individual from attending the Graduation Ceremony:
The individual is experiencing any health-related symptoms or concerns such as cough, shortness of breath, fever, chills, new muscle aches, sore throat, or runny nose.
The individual has 1. come into contact with a person who is a confirmed case of COVID-19 and has not exceeded the recommended quarantine timeline 2. come into contact with anyone who is under investigation for COVID-19, or 3. come into contact with a person who is ill with a respiratory illness in the last 14 days.
The individual has travelled outside the state of New Hampshire in the past 14 days.
For Those Unable to Attend - How to Livestream Graduation 2020:
Family/Friends can access the stream through this link: https://www.dppgnetwork.com/watch-dppg. Once you have clicked on the link, you will be prompted to create an account or sign-in if you already have an account. As soon as you are logged in, you will be able to see the stream. The account is free and the stream is also free (both will always be free).
Here is a list of Frequently Asked Questions
· Will the ceremony be live streamed?
Yes, a full live stream can be viewed through our website through our broadcast portal.
· Is there a cost to view the broadcast?
No, the ceremony is 100% free to view.
· Will the broadcast be available to watch on-demand?
Yes, users will be able to watch the full ceremony on-demand through our site.
· What do I have to do in order to view the broadcast?
All a user needs to do is create a free account with our website, and then he/she will be able to view the broadcast live or on-demand.
· Will the website account ever cost me anything?
Not at all! The DPPG website account you create will always be 100% free, and we will never charge you to be a member of our network!
· Can I create an account ahead of time? If so, how?
Of course! There are two ways to create an account, click on the "Join DPPG Network" tab in the main menu bar, and then follow the instructions. The second option is to enter the broadcast portal ahead of time. A user must have an account in order to enter the broadcast portal, so if someone tries to enter the portal without an account, he/she will be prompted to create an account and then will be redirected to the portal once the account is established.
· How can I access the broadcast portal?
There are two ways, both are on the main home page of this website. In the scrolling news slides at the top of the page, on the slide about DPPG broadcasting the ceremony there is a "Watch Here" button; click that. The second option is just under the scrolling news slides, under "Additional Headlines" - you will find a link to view the ceremony. On the day of the event, there will be a banner across the top of the website linked directly to the broadcast portal!
· If I have trouble creating an account/viewing the ceremony, how can I get assistance?
There will be someone online to be able to assist you! In order to receive help, just click the little yellow bubble with the three dots in the bottom right of the screen; from there, just type what you need help with and someone will be there to assist you!
· What happens if the stream crashes?
First, we hope that doesn't happen! But if in the off chance that happens, we will re-upload the full ceremony onto our website through the same link.
We hope you enjoy tonight's Awards Ceremony - and we can't wait to share in tomorrow's special day!
Be well and have a great evening,
Mr. Matthew Finch
Principal, Belmont High School
