Sweetwater High School seniors graduated Friday night, but their walk across the stage was caught in a storm of backlash over the ceremony’s scheduling.
Many people contacted 10News after the school postponed the graduation ceremonies – originally scheduled for Thursday night.
The director of Monroe County Schools, Tim Blankenship, said in a note to 10News, "Due to inclement weather, in an effort to ensure the safety of our students and guests, Sweetwater High School's graduation ceremony was postponed and rescheduled for Friday."
The school's Facebook page said "The National Weather Service advised SHS to postpone graduation due to weather concerns."
But parents told 10News their main complaint was confusion over the backup plan.
While the school posted on Facebook "the gym is not an option and never was considered," the school's online calendar noted "in case of inclement weather, Graduation will be held in the gym and each student will be issued 6 tickets."
The school posted on Facebook that students were notified earlier this week postponement was a possibility.
That did not assuage the complaints of folks who had driven hundreds of miles for an event they could then not attend.
Some seniors told 10News they had to miss the ceremony because they had already made travel plans for what they had thought would be the day after graduation.
But the school said in a post that it wants to focus on the bright side: the celebration of an educational milestone, and the years of great memories made by a great class of students.
"Great memories were made! This is a great class..." read the Sweetwater High Facebook page.