It’s a huge win for Azle High as more than 400 touch home plate at Globe Life Field
The team arrived at the Globe Life Field early. They had their hats and uniforms on and they were ready to step onto the field.
Only the hats and uniforms were kelly green mortarboards and gowns and the team were the 400-plus graduates of Azle High School.
Because of concerns over the coronavirus pandemic, Azle needed to move its graduation from its original location at the Fort Worth Convention Center, an indoor facility that has been banned by Gov. Greg Abbott from hosting such events.
Azle is one of nearly 50 high schools that will hold its graduation ceremony outdoors at Globe Life Field, the yet-to-be-played-in $1.2 billion retractable-roof home of the Texas Rangers.
“I am a huge baseball fan, so I was kind of excited ... to come see the new park,” said Austyn Naron, whose (obvious) main reason for attending Saturday night’s ceremony was so that she could see her daughter receive her diploma along with the rest of the Class of 2020.
“I’d like to thank all the incredible people involved that made graduation possible,” Azle class president Maddie Aniasco said. “Without them, we would not be able to come together and commemorate all our hard work these past four years. Although this is not how we expected our senior year to end, our class will forever be a part of history.”
“With everything they missed out on, it was nice to have something,” mother Tabatha Bradley said.
Students and facility were seated six feet apart on the field level while family members sat on the second level next to the main concourse with hundreds of seats left empty to assure social distancing.
However, families were given tickets and assigned seating and some were separated like the Erwin family.
They had five members in one area of the stadium, three in another and two in a third area.
“That’s the only thing I didn’t like, the seating,” said Melissa Erwin, who was watching her son Michael graduate. “We could’ve been all sitting together, but I’m happy I got to watch my son cross the stage.”
She sat with Michael’s step-mother Holly, who was wondering if an in-person graduation was ever going to happen.
“We didn’t think there was going to be one at all and it was very upsetting because of how hard these kids worked,” Holly said. “I was excited about this.”
Hand sanitizing stations were put in place along the main concourse.
When the students picked up their diplomas, one half the school crossed home plate from the first-base dugout while the other half did the same from the third-base dugout.
They took a photo while at home plate and displayed on the jumbotron.
Students were given school-branded masks while family members had the option to wear one. The retractable roof remained open, as per the governor’s order.
Following the ceremony, several members of the Rangers gave their well wishes on the jumbotron, including Elvis Andrus, Joey Gallo, Rougned Odor, Willie Calhoun and manager Chris Woodward.
“Thank you Azle ISD for making it possible to have our graduation here at a brand new field and also making sure we are safe,” valedictorian Jackson Penshorn said.
Cleburne held its ceremony at Globe Life Field on Sunday while other school districts in the future include Burleson, Birdville, Everman, Duncanville, Keller, Kennedale, Mansfield, Rockwall, Mesquite and White Settlement.
The stadium is just one of the venues to have a unique graduation due to COVID-19.
Texas Motor Speedway will host 31 high schools, AT&T Stadium will celebrate Arlington ISD from June 5-7 and the Coyote Drive-In will have Crowley and North Crowley on June 14-15.
This story was originally published May 31, 2020 at 9:57 AM.
