Out!

Commencement.

Today's graduation will no doubt be filled with the usual flourishes; flowing gowns, a stately procession, speeches filled with inspired rhetoric. As the graduates file across the stage with diplomas finally in hand, our collective shoulders will relax as proud parents and weary teachers figuratively tie a bow on the Class of 2026. 

For some of my colleagues, this watershed mark does little to lighten their load. They remain busy with summer programs, off-season planning, construction projects, audits, inventory checks, and more. The hum of campus dims but never falls silent for them.

But for others, today is a true goodbye; off to new adventures or recalibrating into retirement. Gone but not forgotten. 

Soon enough autumn will come. The campus will be thrust back to full throttle, welcoming new faces, new ideas, and new opportunities. But for now...

"School's out for summer!" - Alice Cooper