Graduation 2010
HEAV Graduation Ceremony
Saturday, June 12, 2010
3:30 p.m.–5:30 p.m.
The Greater Richmond
Convention Center
403 North 3rd Street (at the corner of Fifth and Broad streets)
Richmond, VA 23219
The graduation ceremony, held upstairs in the Ballroom Building, will begin at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, June 12, 2010. You must register in advance to participate.
A list of questions about graduation--and their answers--can be found in the Graduation FAQs.
Although graduation is a ticketed event, seats typically are available for convention attendees after 3:15 p.m.; please check with the ushers at the doors.
[ Photo © Seth Fisher, Through My Lens Photography ]
GRADUATION FAQS
Wendy Fish, Graduation Coordinator, graduation@heav.org
1. What are the requirements to participate?
2. How can I receive information about participating?
3. What is a GRAD Packet?
4. If I request a GRAD Packet, does that mean I am registered for graduation?
5. When am I considered a registered graduate?
6. What is the deadline for registration?
7. When and where will the ceremony be held?
8. Do I have to be an HEAV member to participate?
9. What are the costs to participate?
10. How do I order my cap and gown, diploma, and announcements?
11. May I choose the color of my cap and gown?
12. What does the diploma look like? Does it look "official"?
13. How do I choose an inscription for my diploma?
14. Do I have to use the HEAV diploma?
15. Do the announcements serve as invitations?
16. What does the announcement look like?
17. How will the portraits look?
18. How many graduates are you expecting?
19. How many guests may I invite to the ceremony? How do I get tickets to give to my guests?
20. Do the graduate and his parents need tickets?
21. Who is the graduation speaker?
22. May we attend convention workshops?
23. What is the schedule for Graduation Day?
24. Graduation check-in is held on Friday and Saturday. Do we have to
check in both times?
25. If we have items for sale in the Used
Curriculum Sale, will we be able to pick up our unsold items?
26. May our guests shop in the Exhibit Hall?
27. Does HEAV offer a class ring?
28. I am not familiar with the proper etiquette for the ceremony, or for addressing and sending graduation invitations or thank-you notes for our graduate's gifts. Can you offer any help?
29. Where can we find information about preparing for and taking the SAT?
30. We are looking at future plans, including college, for this graduate or another child; do you have any resources to guide our search?
1. What are the
requirements to participate?
HEAV does not have academic (GPA, credits, or courses) or age requirements for participation in the graduation weekend. Consistent with our belief that education is the primary responsibility of parents, we leave this decision in the hands of each family. As long as the graduate has been home educated under Virginia law §22.1-254.1 (homeschool statute), §22.1-254(B)(1) (religious exemption), or §22.1-254(A) (certified tutor provision), we invite your family to participate in the Class of 2010. If the participating graduate is from another state, he or she will have to have abided by the laws pertaining to home instruction in that state.
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2. How
can I receive information about participating?
Download a GRAD Packet, a PDF document containing complete graduation details. Note: You will NOT be considered registered for graduation until you complete the process outlined in the packet.
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3.
What is a GRAD Packet?
A GRAD (Graduation Registration And Details) Packet includes all the forms necessary for registration, as well as other vital graduation information.
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4. If I request a GRAD Packet, does that mean I am registered for graduation?
No. Requesting or downloading a GRAD Packet simply gives you information and details about graduation; it does NOT register you for graduation. Anyone will be able to download a GRAD Packet once they are available, but graduates will NOT be registered until the registration process outlined in the packet is completed, and HEAV has received the registration fee.
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5. When am I considered a registered graduate?
You are not considered a registered graduate until the registration process outlined in the packet is completed, and HEAV has received the registration fee.
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6. What is the deadline for registration?
The application deadline is April 6, 2010.
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7. When and where will the ceremony be held?
The graduates of the Class of 2010 will receive their diplomas on Saturday, June 12, 2010, at 3:30 p.m. The ceremony will take place from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. in the ballroom of the Greater Richmond Convention Center at the corner of Fifth and Broad streets, in Richmond, Virginia. (See
the Convention Center
website for location details.)
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8. Do I
have to be an HEAV member to participate?
No. Both member and non-member families are invited to participate in the ceremony.
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9. What are the costs to participate?
The only required cost is the application fee. If you do not have a royal blue or white cap and gown, you will also be required to purchase one. Check back in the next few weeks for the cost amounts. The costs, as well as the optional items, will be thoroughly explained in your GRAD Packet.
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10. How do
I order my cap and gown, diploma, and announcements?
Instructions for ordering your cap and gown, diploma, announcements, and name cards will be included in the GRAD Packet.
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11. May I choose the color of my cap and gown?
You may choose to wear either a royal blue or white gown, with a matching cap. The tassel color is gold. Traditionally, the men choose royal blue and the ladies choose white.
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12.
What does the diploma look like? Does it look "official"?
The diploma was designed by HSLDA for home-educated graduates and is printed in rich navy and black ink on parchment. This certificate will be inscribed with the graduate's name, date of graduation, and the name of the graduate's school or curriculum. It will also include the signatures of the graduate's parents, the HEAV president, and the commencement speaker. A gold-foil seal and navy ribbon adorn the diploma, which is encased in a beautiful padded and lined navy case.
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13. How
do I choose an inscription for my diploma?
For the diploma wording in the section, "...has completed the course of study prescribed for graduation by...," you may want to write, "his parents," the name of your school or a correspondence course you used. Please do not use "prescribed by the Commonwealth of Virginia." The Commonwealth of Virginia does not prescribe a curriculum or course of study for Virginia homeschoolers. It is up to the parents to decide the course of study. This also incorrectly implies the Commonwealth of Virginia has authorized and approved your course of study.
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14. Do I
have to use the HEAV diploma?
You are not required to purchase a diploma through HEAV. Some families use a diploma from their local support group's graduation ceremony or simply a computer-generated certificate. If you do not purchase a diploma through HEAV, you are required to bring something that resembles a diploma for the presentation during the ceremony. It should be flat, sturdy, clearly labeled with your full name, and measure 8 ½" by 11".
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15. Do
the announcements serve as invitations?
No, announcements are not invitations. Announcements are designed to be a formal means of letting your friends and family know of your graduation from high school.
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16.
What does the announcement look like?
The formal, white graduation announcement features a black embossed script on the front panel that reads as follows:
Home Educators Association of Virginia
is pleased to announce its
Commencement Exercises
for the Homeschool Graduates of the
Class of Two Thousand and Ten
on Saturday, the twelfth of June
at three-thirty in the afternoon
Greater Richmond Convention Center
Richmond, Virginia
[Photo Credit: Seth Fisher/Through My Lens Photography]
The inside is blank. If you choose to order our announcements, you will receive outer envelopes, inner envelopes, tissue inserts, and an addressing guide. Name cards, sold separately, may also be ordered. Name cards are placed on top of the announcements. Announcements may be sent with or without name cards.
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17. How will the portraits look?
Jamie Jones Photography has done an outstanding job of capturing the spirit of our graduates in individual and family portraits. You may expect the highest quality medium format (studio-quality) photograph at an affordable price.
Photography
FAQ Page
Listing of Photo Packages
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18. How many graduates are you expecting?
The Class of 2010 is expected to have approximately 200 graduates.
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19. How
many guests may I invite to the ceremony? How do I get tickets to give to my
guests?
When you register, you should indicate the number of tickets you need for your family and friends. Each graduate is initially allotted 10 tickets; however, please indicate on your registration form the exact number you need so any "extra" tickets will be available to those who need them. If you need more than 10 tickets, indicate the number you would like on your registration form and we will do our best to get them for you if possible. "Extra" tickets will be distributed on a first-requested, first-served basis. Tickets (including "extras" requested, if available) will be mailed to you in May in your confirmation packet.
The only reserved seating in the ballroom is for graduates and parents; the rest of the seating is general admission, meaning seats are not pre-assigned, but tickets are required. Ticketed guests need to arrive before 3:15 p.m. At 3:15 p.m., tickets are no longer needed and all available seats may be filled by convention attendees. Ticketed guests who do not arrive before 3:15 p.m. may not get a seat.
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20. Do
the graduate and his parents need tickets?
The graduate and his parents do NOT need tickets as these honored guests of graduation will be wearing nametags, which replace the need for tickets.
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21. Who
is the graduation speaker?
Ken Ham from Answers in Genesis.
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22. May
we attend convention workshops?
If you would like to attend the convention, you will need to register for that separately by contacting the HEAV office at 804-278-9200 or office@heav.org.
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23. What
is the schedule for Graduation Day?
Check-in will open at 8:30 a.m. and close at 10:30 a.m. Portraits will be taken throughout the morning, by appointment. Walk-ins will be worked in whenever possible. A mandatory rehearsal for graduates and parents will take place from 1 p.m. until about 2:30 p.m. Graduates will begin to line up in processional order at 3 p.m. The ceremony will begin promptly at 3:30 p.m.
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24. Graduation check-in is held on Friday and
Saturday. Do we have to check in both times?
No, if your family checks in on Friday, you are not required to check in on Saturday. Likewise, if you plan to check in on Saturday, you do not need to check in on Friday. You need to check in on either Friday or Saturday.
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25. If we have items for sale in the Used Curriculum
Sale, will we be able to pick up our unsold items?
No, you will not be able to pick up your unsold items. UCS closes before the graduation ceremony ends. Please make arrangements for someone else to pick up your unsold items.
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26.
May our guests shop in the Exhibit Hall?
Yes! Family members and friends with a ticket to the graduation ceremony may browse the Exhibit Hall in the adjoining Richmond Center FREE OF CHARGE on Friday evening after 5 p.m., and all day on Saturday.
Be sure to let your guests know they will be admitted at no cost when they show their graduation ticket. This is a perfect opportunity for grandparents and other family members and friends to see the extensive resources available to homeschool families--they are often amazed at the variety and diversity of educational materials. (It's also a great place to purchase gifts!)
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27. Does HEAV offer a class ring?
The Lord's Fine Jewelry will supply the Class of
2010 with individual, high-quality, reasonably priced class rings. They have a
wide selection of emblems, stones, metals, and cuts from which to choose. You
should contact them directly through their website, Lord's Fine Jewelry,
or call 800-775-LORD, to request a catalog and pricing information. The Lord's
Fine Jewelry is owned by a homeschooling family in Oklahoma, and is committed
to offering only the finest-quality, hand-tooled jewelry as a testimony to the
Lord's goodness and majesty!
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28. I am not familiar with the proper etiquette for the ceremony, or
for addressing and sending graduation invitations or thank-you notes for our
graduate's gifts. Can you offer any help?
Yes! We have put together a Graduation Etiquette Guide just for you! It will be included in your GRAD Packet.
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29. Where can we find information about preparing for and taking the
SAT?
You may pick up SAT information from a local high school, or you may request
a "SAT Registration Bulletin," from the HEAV office at
office@heav.org. This bulletin
tells when and where the test will be given and how to register. The following
booklets, which include preparation tips and a practice test (SAT I) or sample
questions (SAT II), are also available through our office: SAT I: Reasoning
Test and SAT II: Subject Tests. To request one, please contact
the office at
office@heav.org or 804-278-9200. Be sure to provide your mailing address and we will be happy to
fill your request.
Additionally, please see the homeschool high school testing information we have on our website, which includes test registration information, links to practice tests, helpful articles, and more.
You may also go to www.collegeboard.com to find
information and to register online for the SAT.
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30. We are looking at future plans, including college, for this
graduate or another child; do you have any resources to guide our search?
The HEAV office has packets from the Christian
Connector, Inc., which contain information on Christian colleges, Bible
colleges, short-term missions, and other Christian youth opportunities. Please
contact the office at
office@heav.org or 804-278-9200. Be sure to provide your mailing address. We will be happy to fill
your request.
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CONGRATULATIONS TO THE CLASS OF 2010!
We look forward to celebrating with you and your family in June. If you have
additional questions you think would be helpful to add to this list of FAQs,
please send them to
graduation@heav.org.
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This page last edited: 13 April 2010
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