Graduation Celebration started in 1997 as a project of the City of Oak Ridge Recreation and Parks Department and the City’s Youth Advisory Board.  With growing support from parents and the business community, the Oak Ridge Graduation Celebration Community Foundation was established in 1999 to ensure the tax-deductibility of donations for this event and to provide coordination of the event beyond the city’s involvement.

Today, that partnership ensures an annual event that kids want to attend, that parents and the community can support and sustain, and that builds on a strong tradition of celebrating our young people as they mark a milestone.

Since its inception, Graduation Celebration has been a party for high school graduates in Oak Ridge, Tennessee (public, private and home school), that offers a drug- and alcohol-free, all-night, lock-in party packed with things to do. Through 2019, the party was held at the Oak Ridge Civic Center and was run by nearly 200 volunteers who chaperoned the event and hosted a wide variety of games. In 2020, however, the planning team had to alter plans dramatically due to COVID, and instead partnered with Oak Ridge High School for a drive-through, socially-distanced celebration of the graduates. With the generous support of the community, we were able to give each graduate a wonderful gift bag, valued at over $50.

After 2020, in light of planned renovations at the Civic Center, a continued need for social distancing, and a significantly depleted volunteer pool, the committee opted to redesign the party, creating a hybrid event with a kick-off gathering at the Civic Center, followed by transportation to the Main Event for a night of high-energy fun. That formula proved very popular with the students and required a much smaller number of volunteers, and the committee is continuing with that model.

As always, Graduation Celebration is a safe place to celebrate our students’ accomplishments. It’s a gift to our young people from parents, teachers, the local business community, churches, and civic and professional organizations. We are deeply grateful for the tremendous support we receive.

Celebrate with us!