Winder-Barrow High School students fight to keep graduation on school's football field

Students at Winder-Barrow High School are pushing back against a plan to move graduation from the school's football field to an arena in another county, ending a decades-old tradition.

The principal sent a letter to the incoming senior class in June announcing that graduation would move from W. Clair Harris Stadium to Akins Ford Arena in Ring in Athens, more than 30 minutes away. Several students spoke against the decision Tuesday before the Barrow County school board.

"I was honestly devastated because most of my family has graduated from Winder-Barrow High School and from that field," senior Emily West said. "It made me really upset to know that I'm not going to be able to follow the tradition that the rest of my family has."

The district said the school made the decision because of concerns about safety, weather and having enough room for the crowd.

Christina Sorah, whose child is a sophomore, a sophomore at the school, said students have looked forward to graduating on the field since elementary school.

"When our children were in elementary school, they graduated in fifth grade in that stadium at the 25-yard line," Sorah said. "They were told, 'We will see you at the 50 at your 12th-grade graduation.' That's something to strive for. Let's keep that tradition alive."

Senior Elijah Kasongo Muniania said he heard the same message during freshman orientation.

"One of the biggest things they drilled into my mind was, 'We'll see you on that 50,'" Muniania said. "At first, I didn't know what that meant. But seeing how many opportunities our school has, I knew that I couldn't wait to graduate."

"It means a lot to graduate in the heart of where you had your formative years in high school," junior Haylee Johnson said.

Johnson said graduating on the field where she has spent so much time performing with the school's marching band is important to her. She started a petition opposing the move that has received more than 1,000 signatures.

"High school can be some of the hardest years of your life, and for some people, graduation is the biggest accomplishment of their life," Johnson said. "It's just being moved somewhere that we have no sentiment."

CBS News Atlanta contacted Winder-Barrow High School about the change but has not received a response.

Apalachee High School and Barrow Arts and Sciences Academy held their graduation ceremonies at Akins Ford Arena this year.