Decorated Mortarboards
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About
Decorated Mortarboards refer to graduation caps with decorated with student-customized images and messages which often reference memes.
Pre-Internet History
The modern graduation caps were developed in the 15th century inspired by birettas which were used by clergymen.[1] According to folklore expert Sheila Bock, caps began being decorated in the 1960s with peace signs to protest the Vietnam War (shown below).[3]
Online History
Some of the earliest conversations had on cap decorations online have been started Twitter. On April 26th, 2017, Twitter user @couch[6] tweeted, "my friend says I should put kthxbye on my graduation cap" (shown below). Internet users began showing off their cap decorations a little later as Instagram became popular.
On May 11th, 2014, Instagram user beejayart[7] posted a picture of their cap featuring doge which gained 60 likes in five years (shown below, left). Featuring memes on graduation caps began in 2014. On May 14th, Instagram user marilynonmars[8] posted a grumpy cat cap (shown below, right).
Reception
Many colleges and high schools do not permit the use of decorated caps during graduation ceremonies as they are said to be a distraction. Some students have started petitions to allow caps to be decorated.[11]
Impact
A professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Sheila Bock, has begun to research and document mortarboard decoration within the colleges folklore department.[2] She is cited as saying that decorating caps is "a way of kind of disrupting the formality of the occasion and taking control of the ceremony back in small ways."[5]
Fandom
As of May 2019, there are over 144,000 posts linked to the hashtag #graduationcap on Instagram and hundreds of boards dedicated to decorating mortarboards on Pinterest.[12]
Related Memes
#Immigrad
In May of 2017 the hashtag #immigrad became linked to graduation cap decorations as a a sign of pride for first generation graduates of immigrant parents.[4] On May 6th, Instagram user undocumedia[9] posted a photo to Instagram of a cap linked to the hashtag (shown below, left). The photo gained over 16,900 likes in two years. On May 10th, another graduate, Twitter user MabeAlcivar[10]posted a photo in dedication to their immigrant parents (shown below right).
Various Examples
![Brian Munoz @brianmmunoz I'm a little obsessed with my graduation cap. #FOIA #PartyLikeAJournalist the truth should not [redacted] OF PERSONAL CREA SIU'19 PRIVATE THPORMA 6:44 PM-6 May 2019 from Carbondale, IL](https://i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/001/490/586/cc0.png "Redacted")
Search Interest
External References
[1] Graduation Source – Cap and Gown History
[2] OSU – Grad Cap Traditions
[3] AZCentral – Mortarboard Decoration
[4] Define American – Why These Students
[5] The Conversation – What we Can learn from Cap Decorations
[8] Instagram – Marilynonmars
[9] Instagram – undocumedia
[10] Twitter – MabeAlcivar
[11] Press Connects – School Policies on Graduation Cap Decor
[12] Pinterest – GraduationSource
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![Brian Munoz @brianmmunoz I'm a little obsessed with my graduation cap. #FOIA #PartyLikeAJournalist the truth should not [redacted] OF PERSONAL CREA SIU'19 PRIVATE THPORMA 6:44 PM-6 May 2019 from Carbondale, IL](https://i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/list/001/490/586/cc0.png "Redacted")
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