Page 82 - Yggdrasil 2021

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Virtual prizes - keeping the tradition alive
By Alessia Garcia-Amandi '24
For the first time in Carrollton history, Junior High Prize Day was celebrated virtually.
Every year the Junior High celebrates the end of the school year with Prize Day where Seventh and Eighth Grade students receive awards for their achievements and Eighth Grade graduates receive their diplomas. The graduates, wearing pastel colored graduation dresses are individually presented with a diploma and a long stem rose. This past school year however, because o f the quarantine. Prize Day was not celebrated in June, but became a virtual event on September 2.
While many were disappointed in not having had a traditional ceremony others were grateful that we have the technology to have made a virtual Prize Day and graduation possible.
"It was strange to not be able to be with my classmates in person or be on our campus for graduation and Prize Day. Being on our computers, each in our homes, wasn t as nice as being with your friends and teachers to celebrate our school year. I think Prize Day went well. At least we could do Prize Day in some way even if we weren t all together," said Mia Jimenez '24.
Eighth grader Ava Gonzalez wrote, "Even though the school did a great job of transferring the ceremony to a virtual platform, I feel like it's not as special as being there with your fellow classmates and teachers. In ceremonies, I feel like human interaction is everything! You get to show others how proud you are o f them and get to see how proud others are o f you. Even though the ceremony was not the same, Carrollton made the best o f it!"
Eighth grade science teacher Mrs. Shulzitski, shares, "It always surprises me how happy I feel to see the faces o f my students - even if it's just virtually! Prize Day definitely didn't have the formality and weight of having it in person. But everything is different these days and so I would say it went well. I especially liked how Mrs. Wood had students unmute so that we could see them as they were recognized."
"Since the ceremony was virtual, I did not have the opportunity to congratulate each of my students individually...Tliey also did not get to see the faces of all their teachers, who are so proud oftheir accomplishments. Iwas just happy that we were able to use some medium to celebrate our students' achievements and accolades. Considering our circumstances, I think Prize Day went very well," wrote Eighth grade math teacher, Mrs. Diaz.
Kindergarten graduation and promotions for the 2019-2020 school year were celebrated in September outdoors and socially distanc