Fort Worth ISD Students, Families Will Have To Beat The Heat During Graduation Ceremonies
TARRANT COUNTY (CBSDFW.COM) — More school districts are adjusting their graduation because of the extreme heat in North Texas. The Fort Worth Independent School District is holding ceremonies that begin June 16.
The high temperature is expected to be in the upper 90s. But Fort Worth ISD already has plans in place to keep spectators safe. Starting with a live feed on the district's YouTube channels under Farrington Field or Clark Stadium live stream. The district says it may not be safe for some people to sit in the sweltering heat for this occasion.
In fact, according to the district, the weather conditions have been deemed unhealthy.
They are — however — trying to help with the comfort level by adding misting and cooling stations and providing water. Medical staff will also be on hand to attend to anyone who has trouble.
The graduation ceremonies began Wednesday -- with two separate events scheduled each day -- through Sunday at 9:00 a.m. and 7:30 p.m.
To prevent people from having to sit and wait in the heat, district leaders are promising to start each ceremony on time and keep it moving efficiently.
District leaders strategically planned to have morning and evening ceremonies to avoid the heat, but know not everyone would be able to handle the heat on their own.
"When you come in, you'll get a cold bottle of water if you want one, we have cooling stations for anyone who may become overheated," said FWISD spokesman Clint Bond.
The district says though outdoor graduation isn't ideal, it was a double-edged sword when planning around COVID-19.
"We had to decide, are we going to go ahead and rent indoor space, and we may not be able to use it because COVID was still rampant? Or are going to do it outside? So we decided, let's plan for outside," Bond said.
