Frank W. Cox High School

Virginia Beach City Public Schools Frank W. Cox High School Virginia Beach City Public Schools Dr. Aaron Spence, Superintendent FRANK W. COX HIGH SCHOOL Randi R. Riesbeck, Ph.D., Principal 2425 Shorehaven Drive Virginia Beach, VA 23454-1749 Telephone: 648-5250 Senior Commencement Handbook 2015

Graduates and spectators, The following rules are to be followed to ensure an organized and successful graduation: 1. Stay seated. 2. Absolutely no noisemakers, balloons, signs, etc. 3. There will be metal detectors at all entrances. To help the line move more efficiently, please carry your cap and gown in your hands when entering the Virginia Beach Convention Center instead of wearing them. 4. The room in which all the graduates will be waiting before the ceremony cannot be re-entered after the ceremony. DO NOT bring any bags or purses with you. There is nowhere to leave belongings. 5. The Virginia Beach Convention Center has also asked that students do not bring any camera bags, tote bags, wrapped packages or cell phones to the ceremony. Parents and guests are welcome to bring the aforementioned, but may be subject to search. Again, congratulations on your graduation!

RECEIVING YOUR DIPLOMA 1. Staff marshals will signal each row to stand. You will exit to the outside of your row. 2. As you approach the podium, hand your index card to the faculty reader and pronounce your name to him or her if necessary. 3. You will receive a diploma cover from Dr. Riesbeck. After she shakes your hand, continue across the stage and down the stairs where you will receive your actual diploma from a guidance counselor before walking down the center aisle to your seat. Upon returning to your seat, sit down. Do not wait for the others in your row to return. 4. After the last senior has received a diploma, Dr. Riesbeck will present the candidates for graduation and make the official announcement that you have graduated. Move your tassel from the right to the left when instructed. Stand quietly for the benediction. Boys will remove their hats. 5. An orderly recessional following the declaration of graduation will follow the ceremony. Please wait for instructions from the podium. This adds an air of dignity to the graduation ceremony. To the Graduating Class of 2015: This handbook, published by the Class of 2015, contains the information you, the graduating senior, need to know regarding commencement activities. Read it carefully; keep it handy. If you have any questions or problems, please see the senior sponsors, Mrs. Clement and Ms. Pugliese. 14

COMMENCEMENT PRACTICE TABLE OF CONTENTS Message to the Senior Class...5 Administration...6 Senior Class Officers...6 Calendar...7 A mandatory meeting for seniors will be held on Tuesday, June 9, at 2:15. You will report to your assigned room. After your appointed line-up teachers have checked roll, you will be given a 3 x 5 index card. At graduation this card will identify you to the reader announcing graduates as they walk across the stage. Your full name will be printed on the card as it appears on your diploma. At Commencement, you will give this card to the reader and pronounce any difficult names. Mandatory graduation practice will be held on Monday, June 15, at 3:45 at the Virginia Beach Convention Center. Diagrams...8 PTSA All-Night Graduation Celebration...10 General Information...11 Examinations...11 Wearing Your Cap and Gown...12 Commencement Practice...13 Commencement...13 Receiving Your Diploma...14 COMMENCEMENT 1. All seniors must report to the meeting room in the Virginia Beach Convention Center by 2:30 p.m. the day of graduation. Your lineup teachers will check roll and seat you. These teachers will also answer any questions. 2. Remember there is no safe place in the meeting rooms to leave valuables or handbags. All such items should be left at home. 3. Promptly at 3:30 p.m. the processional will begin. Follow the person ahead of you. 4. Sit in the row assigned to you by the staff marshals. Seats are not numbered. Do not leave any seats empty; fill the row. 5. Do not immediately sit down. Remain standing in front of your seat for the invocation. Boys will remove their hats. 6. Due to a limited amount of parking at the VB Convention Center, students are encouraged to carpool to and from commencement. 13

WEARING YOUR CAP AND GOWN GENTLEMEN: With your cap and gown, please wear a collared shirt, a tie, long pants, socks, and dark shoes. No flip-flops, sandals, tennis shoes, shorts, or blue jeans are allowed. Jackets are not necessary. LADIES: The color of your dress is not terribly significant since your gown will cover your dress. However, please do not wear flip-flops, tennis shoes, shorts, or blue jeans. 1. Your cap is worn straight on your head, pulled well down on the forehead. The front of the cap is indicated on the inside of the crown. The tassel is on the right. 2. Nothing is to be worn over your cap and gown except an honor graduate stole, a National Honor Society stole, or an approved representation from your honor society. 3. Read the information entitled "Wearing and Care of a Graduation Cap and Gown," which is printed on the back of the plastic bag in which your cap and gown are packaged. BE CERTAIN THAT YOUR GOWN IS PRESSED FOR THE CEREMONY. At Commencement, boys will remove their caps for the invocation and the benediction. Girls will not remove their caps at any time. The official list of honor graduates will be posted outside of the Guidance Office on Wednesday, June 17, at 2:00 p.m. Check the list; please do not call Guidance. The contact person for graduation regalia is Eric Harvell of Jostens, Inc. or visit www.jostens.com. Regalia will be available for purchase at the graduation practice. June 2015 Dear Members of the Class of 2015: On behalf of our entire faculty and staff, please let me take this opportunity to congratulate each of you as you prepare to wear the traditional cap and gown and receive your high school diploma. As an outstanding group of students, you have left a legacy which will challenge future graduates of Frank W. Cox High School. For hundreds of years, the academic regalia you are about to wear has been a symbol of excellence and scholarship. It represents your scholastic success, and we trust you will wear it with pride. Participation in the graduation ceremony is also symbolic of passage from adolescence into adulthood. We welcome you to the privileges and responsibilities that come with your new status. We are proud to join your family and friends in celebrating this special occasion with you. Respectfully, Randi R. Riesbeck, Ph.D. Principal 12 5

ADMINISTRATION Principal... Dr. Randi R. Riesbeck Assistant Principal... Christine M. Colden Assistant Principal... Cletus S. Griffin Assistant Principal... Dr. Michael E. Sicignano Assistant Principal...Kellie A. Mason SENIOR CLASS OFFICERS President... John Harrison Vice President... Benjamin Cotton Secretary... Lauren Harris Treasurer... Suzanne Pileckas Historian... Casey Spanitz SCA OFFICERS President... Nicholas Webb Vice President...Caroline Dugas Secretary...Clayborne Louizou Treasurer... Madeline Dowd Historian... Frayser Wall SPONSORS Gerri Clement... Elizabeth Pugliese GENERAL INFORMATION 1. In order to participate in the commencement ceremony, a senior must attend the mandatory class meeting on Tuesday, June 9, as well as commencement practice which will take place on Monday, June 15 from 3:45-5:00 at the Virginia Beach Convention Center. 2. Each senior will be given commencement tickets at the class meeting on June 9. Additional tickets may be acquired from classmates. Your guests will need tickets and should be appropriately dressed for commencement. 3. The processional, or the order of march, will include the SCA president, the valedictorian and the salutatorian, the faculty, followed by students with 4.0 GPAs, and the senior class in alphabetical order. The processional will be led by student marshals. 4. Please note that no one will be allowed within the roped off areas or in the aisles during commencement exercises to take pictures. No tripods will be permitted. Videotaping will have to be done from the spectator's seat. Professional taping of the commencement will be available for purchase. NO ONE IS PERMITTED IN FRONT OF THE STAGE DURING THE CEREMONY TO TAKE PICTURES. 5. Your report card will be mailed to you. EXAMINATIONS 1. All students enrolled in semester courses are required to take an examination in the course. 2. A senior who has an A or B average in a year course through the end of the fourth marking period will be exempt from taking a final exam. However, a student may choose to take the exam if he/she feels that it will result in a higher second semester average or final grade. 3. A senior is eligible for a re-examination in a particular course only if he/she is passing the course when he/she takes the examination, and the examination grade causes him/her to fail the course. 4. Students enrolled in vocational courses at Vo-Tech, ATC, and VBRA will be given a separate examination schedule for classes taken at these locations. 6 11

PTSA S ALL-NIGHT GRADUATION CELEBRATION Date: Saturday, June 20 Time: 10:15 p.m. 5:00 a.m. Where: GameWorks @ Greenbrier Who: Cox High School 2015 Graduates ONLY Cost: $60 per ticket TICKETS MAY BE PURCHASED IN THE LIBRARY!! NO TICKETS SOLD AT THE DOOR! Food and Drink: Plentiful and continuous all night long! Activities: GameWorks games, pool tables, a DJ, massages, a musician, and more. Reminder: Remember your parental permission slip! PTSA S ALL-NIGHT GRADUATION GUIDELINES Check in at the COX HIGH SCHOOL cafeteria at 10:15 p.m. DO NOT BE LATE! Transportation to GameWorks is provided. You will be issued a wristband; it MUST be worn all night. It allows you to participate in all activities. Once the wristband is issued, you may NOT leave. If you leave at any time, you will be barred from re-entering and your parents will be notified. There will be NO place to store personal items at the venue. Clothing with pockets is encouraged. All school rules and dress code must be followed. These include no smoking, no alcohol, no drugs, no weapons, no fighting, no foul language, no leaving the premises, no jackets, and no backpacks. Anyone arriving "under the influence" will be reported to our school resource officer and subject to legal action. Tuesday, June 9 CALENDAR Mandatory Senior Class Meeting... 2:15 Friday, June 12 Senior Assembly and picnic Monday, June 15 Mandatory Graduation Practice at the VB Convention Center... 3:45-5:00 Saturday, June 20 Commencement... 3:30 Seniors are to report to the line-up room at the Virginia Beach Convention Center NO LATER THAN 2:30 PM. Late arrival could jeopardize your ability to participate. 10 7

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