Kumon franchise branch holds socially distanced awards ceremony

A Kumon franchise unit in Galway, Ireland celebrated its students’ academic achievements on Sunday 13th September.

The Kumon Galway 2020 Awards looked a little different this year; they were held outdoors at the Galway Greyhound Stadium, and each family stayed in their car for most of the ceremony. The education franchise unit filmed the event, which was live-streamed to YouTube by SoundtoLight.

When each child’s name was called out, the families could leave their vehicles so the hardworking winner could collect their award. Throughout the ceremony, Kumon made sure every attendee wore a mask, stayed socially distant and sanitised their hands. Meanwhile, families and friends around the world watched the event on the YouTube feed and celebrated the pupils’ accomplishments in real time.

By the end of the day, every student had been presented with a level certificate, and some had also been given a medal to recognise special achievements. Pupils who were more than six months ahead of their age group won bronze medals, while children who were two years ahead were given silver ones. Gold awards were saved for students who had managed to get three years ahead.

The centre also dished out awards for the branch’s highest achievers. David Schirliu and Anusooya Thapa became Gold Medal Completers in Kumon’s English programme, while Abigail Sunil took home the Stephen Hayden Trophy for maths.

After receiving the English award, Anusooya stepped onto the stage to reveal more about the journey to becoming a Kumon ‘Completer’. The speech touched on the challenges and final sense of fulfilment gained through improvements in the field of English.

Before the event concluded, the award winners had the chance to have a ‘socially-distant’ photograph taken with the Mayor of Galway himself, Cllr Mike Cubbard.

Congratulations to all Kumon students for your hard work and resilience during the coronavirus pandemic!