Cap and gown informational meeting to prepare seniors for Graduation

Noah+Hindi%2C+class+of+2021%2C+walks+back+to+his+seat+after+receiving+his+certificate+on+June+2.+In+previous+years%2C+Graduation+was+at+Chaifetz+Arena+on+St.+Louis+Universitys+%28SLU%29+Campus%2C+but+because+of+COVID-19%2C+SLU+cancelled+its+events.+As+a+result%2C+the+2021+Graduation+was+held+at+the+POWERplex.+

Anusha Singh

Noah Hindi, class of 2021, walks back to his seat after receiving his certificate on June 2. In previous years, Graduation was at Chaifetz Arena on St. Louis University’s (SLU) Campus, but because of COVID-19, SLU cancelled its events. As a result, the 2021 Graduation was held at the POWERplex.

Caoimhe Farris, Staff Reporter

On Oct. 28, Sam Glennon, a representative from Jostens, will be visiting Lafayette for a presentation on how to purchase caps and gowns for senior graduation. Jostens sells customized items, such as yearbooks and class rings, to students around the nation. The presentation will take place in the Theater during Mod 1 of AcLab.

“We are gonna hold this in the Theater. He’ll go through everything and then we’ll set students out for Mod 2. I have a feeling there will be a specific link for Lafayette, and he will provide that,” Assistant Principal Colleen Fields said. 

Seniors will not be required to attend, but it is recommended for students to understand how to navigate the process.

“There’s a $60 fee that covers the cap and gowns rental and helps to pay for the events and anything extra because Jostens has a lot of cool stuff they like to put out for seniors. [This includes] shirts, hats, sweatshirts and fancy tassels,”  Fields said. 

A packet will be passed out to seniors including all the ordering information along with other products like hoodies, shirts and the graduation announcement. Glennon will guide seniors through the ordering process and parents can use the information on the provided packets if they have further questions. Seniors will be required to return their gowns after graduation, but are allowed to keep their caps.

“Seniors will walk out with a packet of information. The front will be the dates and the inside will be all the stuff that you can order. I think a lot of the ordering will be happening online so that will make it pretty convenient,” Fields said. 

Glennon will return to Lafayette on Nov. 5 to do in-person orders and answer any other questions students have.

“[Jostens] have an online ordering option but they will also be here on Nov. 5 from 7:45 a.m. to 12:10 p.m. They’ll be on the stage in the Commons and they will take in-person orders at that time,” Fields said.

Seniors will receive their cap and gowns on graduation practice day, along with additional items depending on what they’ve ordered.

“On graduation practice day, which is usually the Friday before Graduation, we will have everybody’s cap and gown in their bag. If they have any stoles, any honor cords, any tassels or special tassels, all of those will be stuffed into that graduation bag. So at graduation practice, we hand each of them their bag and then they take that home [to] get ready for graduation,” Fields said.