Carl Sandburg College Cancels 2020 On-Campus Commencement

  Aaron Frey
  Thursday, March 19, 2020 5:06 PM
  Campus News

Galesburg, IL

The following is a message from Carl Sandburg College President Dr. Seamus Reilly:

Dear Sandburg community,

The past week has been one of the most challenging in the history of Carl Sandburg College, and the decisions made during this time of the coronavirus pandemic have been made with great care and consideration for our students, faculty, staff and community.

In addition to moving classes and College services to an online capacity for the remainder of the spring semester, we have made the difficult choice to cancel this year’s on-campus Commencement ceremonies. Pinning ceremonies for this year’s nursing program graduates and all other on-campus events through the remainder of the semester also have been canceled.

We know this is a disappointing moment for all of our students who planned to walk across the stage this spring as Carl Sandburg College graduates, and it is a moment nobody deserves to have denied from them. It is a painful choice for us as well, as our mission is geared toward seeing students achieve that ultimate goal of becoming a Sandburg graduate. However, given the directive from the Centers for Disease Control not to have gatherings of 10 or more for the next eight weeks, this is a decision we made with the wellbeing of everyone in mind.

It is our plan to give our newest graduates their due recognition in some capacity at the end of the semester. Details will be shared as that information is finalized.

Please know that even though you and your peers will not able to have that shared experience at Commencement, the accomplishment of becoming a Carl Sandburg College graduate is something that will never be taken away.

Dr. Seamus Reilly