Delayed due to COVID-19: Duke finally holds graduation for Class of 2020

DURHAM, N.C. (WTVD) -- More than a year after they finished school, Duke's Class of 2020 finally got to have an official graduation ceremony.

The COVID-19 pandemic forced Duke to cancel its traditional 2020 graduation ceremony back in May of last year.

"Do you remember getting that email, the one that said in essence that our time on this breathtaking Gothic campus was up? I distinctly remember sitting with one of my best friends moments later, hugging her as we cried on her bathroom floor," Sabrina Maciareiello said during the ceremony.

The Class of 2021 even got to turn their tassels before the Class of 2020--as Duke was able to do a graduation this May.

But Sunday was the time for the Class of 2020 to celebrate. On a cool but pleasant September morning at the Abele Quad on West Campus, the pandemic class got to say a proper goodbye to Duke University.

Leading them in the celebration was actor, comedian and physician Ken Jeong, who graduated from Duke in 1990. As commencement speaker he talked about memories from his time as a student, and how the things he did at Duke "informed me for the rest of my life."