UPDATE: On March 27, the university announced plans to reschedule convocation, saying “our graduating students will still have an opportunity to cross the stage and we are putting plans in place for a rescheduled convocation ceremony.”
The University of Guelph announced today that spring convocation and the annual alumni weekend have been cancelled.
In a daily update regarding COVID-19, Franco Vaccarino President and Vice-Chancellor of the university said that the university is working to prioritize social distancing. Many other events, including College Royal and the Athletic Banquet which were both set to take place this spring, had already been cancelled earlier this month.
“Under these difficult and challenging circumstances, our decisions are driven by the imperative of maintaining the health and safety of our community,” reads the update from Vaccarino. “As we continue to watch the spread of COVID-19 in Canada and around the world, we don’t yet know when these social distancing measures will be relaxed or lifted.”
Convocation is normally highly attended and brings together students and families from far beyond the Guelph area.
Despite the cancellation, all students who are eligible to graduate this year will still graduate.
“We know that the decision to not hold the June convocation ceremonies will be very disappointing to our graduating students and their families and friends”
The university will provide updated convocation plans in the coming weeks.