<p>I am interested in hearing from people who have been through the ceremony at the stadium as a grad. My mom found a website that was describing where I would have to go and what I would have to do, and it sounded like it was going to make for a hectic and confusing morning for me figuring out how to get to the right place. Is that really how it is or is it organized well enough that it's not confusing at all once you get there? My high school graduation was nearly a disaster so I am a little bit nervous. :( </p>
<p>And where the hell will I tell my parents to park? They live in Canton so they won't be staying at a local hotel to take the bus to the stadium or anything like that, they will have to drive. And they don't know how to use buses anyway so I hope they won't have to park too far away.</p>
<p>Ema, it has been a really long time since I graduated at the Big House, so I don’t recall the details, but I was there last year as a spectator, and it seemed quite organized. The graduates did not all walk in formally all together or anything, it seemed like they had a staging area where they gathered and then at a certain time they started coming in down the stairways. Those are a lot of steps to do, so if you have an inability to do that, I would think that you should get a pass to come through the back stage area without all the steps. </p>
<p>We got to the stadium very early last year because of Obama being the speaker and we were able to park at Pioneer High School across the street for a price. We then walked to the stadium and went to our assigned seats. It all went pretty smoothly.</p>
<p>Thanks for chiming in. I hadn’t thought about the steps. I have a lot of trouble with those. At football I hobbled along well enough but I had to walk slowly. And I absolutely couldn’t wear the shoes I was planning to wear, now that I am thinking about it. Thank goodness you brought this up, I’d have never thought of that. Maybe I should talk to someone about seeing if there’s a different way for me to go.</p>
<p>I nearly missed my name getting called at my high school graduation because someone told me to go to the wrong place, and I had to fix it in front of the entire crowd. I’m a little traumatized. I know we don’t “walk” but I didn’t know if I was going to be expected to do anything but show up and walk in as though it were a football game or what!</p>
<p>Two years ago the graduates walked across the football field and then up the steps into the stands. On the commencement website, there is advice to wear comfortable shoes, and a number to call if you need an easier route to a seat in the stands. Some academic departments have separate graduations on different dates and times in addition to the main graduation. These are more like high school graduations with alphabetical seating for the grads, a route for the grads to walk during the ceremony, and each individual introduced on stage. These offer more to do for the grad and are more personalized. Doing both the main graduation and the departmental graduation, if offered, is a good combination.</p>
<p>I second the suggestion to park at Pioneer High School. The State Street and Hoover Street areas were jam packed and slow moving. It is better to avoid those unless you need to use the drop-off for guests with disabilities. There were lots of golf carts with drivers there at that drop-off though to assist guests, and there were many helpful personnel.</p>
I know we don’t “walk” but I didn’t know if I was going to be expected to do anything but show up and walk in as though it were a football game or what!</p>