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Going Green for Graduation at East Stroudsburg University

EAST STROUDSBURG — Graduation is going green at East Stroudsburg University. The gowns are made of recycled plastic. The black commencement gowns are actu...

EAST STROUDSBURG -- Graduation is going green at East Stroudsburg University. The gowns are made of recycled plastic.

The black commencement gowns are actually as "green" as you can get.

East Stroudsburg University decided to switch to this regalia for their winter commencement ceremony this weekend.

"It was a no-brainer. We looked at the gown. We compared it to the previous gown and it was a quick decision to make,” said assistant registrar for graduate studies Milagros Casillas.

The fabric is made up of recycled plastic. Each robe equals about 23 soda bottles.

"We'll have about over 400 students graduating, so that's quite a number of plastic bottles that we've taken out of the waste stream,” said Vice President for Enrollment Management David Bousquet.

University officials say another benefit to going green with these gowns at graduation is that the price isn't going to change.

Students picking up their last-minute graduation memorabilia are glad their university is behind this environmentally friendly fashion.

"I think that's very important, being a part of a community that is working on saving the environment and being eco-friendly is a great thing to be involved with,” said ESU graduate Meghan O’Donnell.

Officials say ESU is one of the first state universities to switch to the matte black gowns and say they’re actually a higher quality from years past.

"I think that we're on the cutting edge of sustainable graduation gowns. We're very pleased to be there. Our students are pleased to be on that cutting edge as well,” said Bousquet.

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