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Gateway's 2020 grads mark their day in Monroeville Mall parking lot | TribLIVE.com
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Gateway's 2020 grads mark their day in Monroeville Mall parking lot

Dillon Carr
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Seniors arrive at the Monroeville Mall for the Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Seniors arrive at the Monroeville Mall for the Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Brooklyn Lehman, 9, and her brother, Elijah Lehman, 13, watch from the top of their family SUV as their brother, Jaired Lehman graduates during the Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Gateway High School senior Selasi Agbodzie, center, waits with fellow classmate as the Class of 2020 commencement ceremony is conducted Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
The Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony is conducted Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Families record the Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony as it is conducted Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Seniors arrive at the Monroeville Mall for the Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Families gather in the parking lot of Macy’s for the Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony Wednesday at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Seniors arrive at the Monroeville Mall for the Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Seniors receive their diploma holders during the Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Families watch from their vehicles during the Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Seniors receive their diploma holders during the Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Families celebrate graduates during the Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Seniors await to take the stage as Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony is conducted Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Aalayah Young, 8, waits with her family, brothers Akell Carrington, and Jymir Allen, before the Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Families celebrate their graduate during Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony Wednesday, in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony is conducted Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Stickers on the parking lot of Macy’s indicate where seniors should stand for the Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony Wednesday at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Graduates celebrate after the Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony on Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony is conducted with a video display in front of Macy’s on Wednesday at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Nana Adusepoku, a senior with the Gateway High School Class of 2020, waits in the front row with fellow classmates for the Gateway High School commencement ceremony Wednesday, in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Seniors arrive at the Monroeville Mall for the Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Graduates toss their caps signaling their final moments as students at Gateway High School on Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Seniors wait in line to take the stage for Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Malachi Moore, 15, left, waits with his cousin, Michael Oliver, right, to watch the Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Graduates celebrate after the Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony on Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Families watch from the parking lot, fenced off from a distance, during the Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Families watch graduates during the Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
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Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Seniors arrive at the Monroeville Mall for the Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.
2681876_web1_te-gatewaygradMacys-30-060420
Shane Dunlap | Tribune-Review
Seniors arrive at the Monroeville Mall for the Gateway High School Class of 2020 commencement ceremony Wednesday in the parking lot of Macy’s at the Monroeville Mall.

Gateway High School graduates made history Wednesday as they graduated from a mall parking lot during a “hybrid commencement ceremony,” as the school’s principal put it.

Traditionally, the high school graduation ceremony marks finality – a last hurrah before parting ways. But this year their last day was effectively March 13, when Gov. Tom Wolf shut down schools and extracurricular activities because of the coronavirus pandemic.

On this day, however, Gateway seniors got a chance to say goodbye – in person – before heading into a world still upended by a pandemic. For one evening in Monroeville, the surreal was put on pause as mothers donned sundresses and bright sandals, barefoot fathers wore shirts and cargo shorts, and extended family and friends gathered in a Macy’s Backstage parking lot that resembled a Sunday tailgate.

Bubbles and helium balloons floated into the sky. Family members played catch with footballs. Siblings stood on car roofs to snap photos. Cheers and honking horns created a celebratory din. The hoopla was genuine. But it was something more: a collective sigh of relief to be given the opportunity to cheer for something together.

For a couple hours on May 27, everything was normal. But everything, of course, was not normal.

Seniors wore masks with their caps and gowns on an 80-degree evening. They stood and sat six feet apart in a parking lot. They did not shake hands with their principal, superintendent or school board president. Instead, they grabbed their own diploma packet on a stage, which hid the darkened retail store behind it.

“This is very different,” said James Nicholas, a grandfather there to support his grandson, Jalen Chavis. “But it’s wonderful.”

He said he’s never seen a graduation ceremony like this. “We have to make the best of the circumstances. And God blessed us with beautiful weather. It could be raining.”

The 1,200-space parking lot was Gateway High School Principal Justin Stephan’s first choice in venue. He and the administration began searching for alternatives in April to be able to adhere to social distancing guidelines and stay true to a Gateway-genuine graduation ceremony.

The unorthodox graduation ceremony is one of many events that has been adapted as schools grapple with changes brought on by the covid-19 pandemic.

The senior awards banquet, traditionally held as a separate event from the graduation ceremony, was canceled.

Gateway administrators also canceled the district’s junior and senior prom that was originally scheduled for May 8. Instead, the class of 2020 will have a “Senior Celebration” from 6 to 10 p.m. July 22 at Edgewood Country Club.

The school district’s Kennywood school picnic, originally scheduled for May 2, has been rescheduled for Aug. 22.

To properly social distance during the parking lot graduation ceremony, graduating seniors were placed in school buses six feet apart and transported to the mall’s parking lot. Folding chairs, designated for seniors, were spaced six feet apart on the north side of the parking lot.

Family members were encouraged to space their vehicles six feet apart and wear masks.

As the ceremony began for the 233 graduating seniors, the class president, Donovan Baxter, the salutatorian, Abigail Secrist, and the valedictorian, Tadeusz Horomanski, addressed the audience in pre-recorded videos. Giana Miller, a senior, then sang the school district’s alma mater.

Spectators listened through their radios by dialing in to 90.1 FM. They watched a giant screen situated above the stage.

The coronavirus was the furthest thing from Patricia McFarland’s mind. She was there with her family to celebrate her youngest to graduate, Emma. Her two other children have already done the traditional Gateway graduation, which is typically held in Antimarino Stadium.

McFarland said she was pregnant with Emma on September 11, 2001.

“So this is very surreal. But it’s just wonderful and I’m happy they’re doing something for these kids and they’re able to walk. They deserve it. These kids are making history.”

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