Since the Spring semester was finished virtually, the Commencement ceremony for the class of 2020 was pushed back until this September. Due to COVID-19, the Barren River District Health Department and COVID-19 Task Force “do not feel its in the best interest of everyone in our WKU community to move forward with September Commencement.”

WKU President Tim Caboni announced in an email that the Commencement ceremony would be pushed further back, hoping to combine the Commencement ceremony of classes 2020 and 2021. 

Caboni also offered a comparison of the ceremony to the fall athletic events that are also currently under review. He stated that the ceremony typically brings together roughly 20,000 each year and that it is the largest event held on campus. He also stated that fall events were under review to be minimized to a quarter of their original size, showing the difficulty of trying to hold a Commencement ceremony. 

Caboni previously announced in June that commencement for Fall 2020 would be merged into the Spring celebration as well.

Debra Murray can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @debramurrayy