The college experience for many of the parents of the Class of 2024 did not begin with the quintessential moment of loading up the car to drive to campus. Instead, parents wished their freshly minted college students luck as they logged on to classes online.

The pandemic meant that for many, there had been no high school graduation ceremonies. Now, some of the families who had to forgo college traditions are facing a graduation season that has been thrown into chaos by a wave of student-led protests sweeping colleges across the country.