St. John’s University to plan for in-person commencement this summer Updated May 03, 2021; Facebook Share STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — After New York State released updated guidelines to allow for large indoor and outdoor graduation ceremonies with coronavirus (COVID-19) safety restrictions in place, St. John’s University, which has a campus on Grymes Hill, announced it is “actively planning” to host multiple in-person ceremonies this summer for the Class of 2021. The university previously told graduates that it would host school-specific Virtual Commencement and Degree Conferral Ceremonies from May 17 to May 23. After the state updated its guidelines last month, a spokesperson told the Advance/SILive.com that the school was considering holding an in-person commencement and would “evaluate in-person alternatives.”