WASHINGTON Last month, high school students across the commonwealth received their high school diplomas. For the graduating students and their families, graduation day is a very exciting time and an important accomplishment deserving much praise. It’s also an important day for the nation’s economy because each high school graduate represents, on average, $260,000 in additional earnings over the course of his or her lifetime compared to a high school dropout.

Motorists driving past Virginia Commonwealth University’s Monroe Park campus should expect delays over the next 10 days while high school graduations are held at the Siegel Center. From today through June 13, more than 20 public high schools from the counties of Chesterfield, Hanover, Henrico and New Kent are holding ceremonies at the Siegel Center at 1200 W. Broad St., along with a private school and a technical school.