Graduation is a special time in the life of a student.
After all the hard work, dedication and countless early mornings and late nights spent working on a degree, students have to pay for their own cap and gown?
Not only pay for it, but pay a lot for it.
Currently, a cap, gown and tassel costs $46.95 from the El Camino College Bookstore. That’s not even for the entire outfit.
The whole package, including those items plus the zipper pull and the sash, means the entire outfit costs upwards of $102.85. Buying the kit, which includes a sweatshirt and T-shirt, without a degree frame costs $148.85.
Charging students a total of $90 for an outfit they will only wear once, on top of the tuition they have already paid for their degree, may be perceived as taking advantage of a student body that is majority low income.
ECC does earn the grace of not making students comply with a charge of nearly $100+ to apply to graduate, unlike four-year institutions.
And the college does have a program which provides free graduation gear. Extended Opportunity Programs and Services provides students with caps and gowns, and a custom EOPS sash to walk the stage.
Yet, being in the program requires the maintenance of certain eligibility requirements, including full-time enrollment, which isn’t accessible to every student — especially working and parenting students.
While ECC should be commended for not forcing its students to pay additional fees just to apply for graduation, this does not mean there isn’t room for improvement.
Most students at ECC do not graduate in just two years. Only 6.9% of students with declared majors completed half of their degree, or 30 units, in their first year at ECC, according to the college’s Annual Planning Dashboard.
Completing degree requirements in two years is an impressive feat, and with the vast majority of ECC students taking upward of two years to complete their degree, graduation marks a significant accomplishment.
Offering students no option to borrow robes, which will only be worn once for a singular event, seems like taking more money from students on their way out of the college.
This could be remedied by students being able to borrow for free, or at least rent at a more reasonable rate, the graduation gear from the student store.
ECC is a community college which primarily serves low-income students.
According to the Academic Program Review Dashboard, 69.4% of ECC students received either a federal Pell Grant or a California College Promise Grant, and both are awarded based on demonstrable financial need.
California community college students complete 81 units on average before graduating, according to a report by the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office.
Multiplied by the $46 per-unit fee, the average degree costs $3,726.
It seems disingenuous for ECC to promote itself as an educational institution meant to assist in students’ paths to success, all while making Commencement come with a price tag — on top of paying nearly $3,000 for their degree — just to walk the stage.
Graduation is a time to be celebrated, not a time for students to bite the cost — or worse, not attend Commencement — a ceremony meant to recognize their achievements at the college.
