In just a few months, seniors across the county will be walking across the stage at Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) Constitution Hall, receiving their high school diplomas and officially closing the high school chapter of their lives. It is a moment that students, families and teachers look forward to for years. What they don’t anticipate, however, is the price of walking across that stage.

Walking across that stage for friends and family to see is a right that every MCPS student has earned and it should not be taken away from them because they are not able to pay for it. Being part of a public education system, one might think that graduation would be paid for by the Board of Education (BOE), but this is not the case. Only part of the fee is paid because of former superintendent Jerry Weast’s decision that giving students a ceremony is not the county’s responsibility.

So how does this affect us? Schools are forced to fundraise for all the materials required for graduation, which in turn takes money away from the school that could have been used to fund other events, such as dances and other fun activities.

In addition to graduation, there are several other occasions where seniors must pay money to things they have earned. Prom tickets alone are around $50. On top of tickets, attire and transportation add to the cost, sucking hundreds of dollars out of the wallets of seniors in just a matter of weeks.