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AN INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER SERVING THE GW COMMUNITY SINCE 1904

The GW Hatchet

Serving the GW Community since 1904

The GW Hatchet

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Officials name senior vice president, chief of staff
By Fiona Riley, Assistant News Editor • March 26, 2024

Staff Editorial: A problematic backup plan

One of GW’s biggest selling points is Commencement on the National Mall. Brochures for the University are covered with dramatic imagery of cap-and-gown-clad students sitting at the steps of our nation’s government. Of course, the pictures chosen often downplay the sometimes inclement weather of the Commencement ceremonies. It is true that holding such an event outside will always carry the risk of being canceled due to bad weather so, for the past few years, the backup site has been the Verizon Center.

This year, the University has made the decision not to reserve the Verizon Center due to costs and the ever-present possibility that D.C. sports teams might have playoff games at the time of Commencement. In place of the Verizon Center, a University committee has made the recommendation that – in line with the idea of the new cost-cutting Innovation Task Force – on-campus facilities should be utilized for the backup plan. This is one recommendation the University needs to ignore.

The Smith Center is not a suitable backup plan for this year’s Commencement ceremony. Should the unlikely cancellation of the ceremony occur, the University needs to have a better backup plan available.

Holding the Commencement ceremony in the Smith Center would mean having a graduation ceremony on par with most high school graduations. Access to the event would be heavily restricted by space issues, and many guests and family members would be unable to attend in person.

At the same time, we can understand the rationale for not reserving the Verizon Center. It is costly and cannot be guaranteed should a D.C. team make the playoffs. Both reasons are big no-nos against making it the backup plan.

GW should look at other venues around and near the city. The D.C. Armory, the Walter E. Washington Convention Center and any available sites close to the District need to be examined for worst-case scenarios. Although the goal of saving money by looking on campus is not necessarily a bad one, in this case the University is justified in spending money to ensure a good ceremony.

It is important to recognize that the backup plan would only be used in the event of an extreme weather situation with lightning or high winds. Nonetheless, with all the buildup to GW’s Commencement, the Smith Center is not a letdown students should have to face, even if there is only a slight chance it will be used.

Readers can visit the Forum to comment on this editorial.

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