Weymouth High School will provide posthumous diplomas to students who die before graduation — a new policy championed by parents whose son, Jonathan Jankord, committed suicide in 2012 when he was a 15-year-old freshman at the school.

And though the policy comes a year too late for Vinnie and Marie Jankord, they are relieved that other parents will have the option.

“I think it’s closure for parents to have that diploma,’’ Vinnie Jankord said.

The Jankords said they were upset when the school didn’t invite them to last year’s graduation, and were instead given a “certificate of attendance’’ before the ceremony.

“I didn’t think that was enough,’’ Jankord said. “That day was important for us. It was the last day I knew Jonathan had something planned. We’d never know if he would have married or had children, but this day we knew he would have been there.’’

So the Jankords started lobbying for posthumous diplomas for other families faced with tragedy. The School Committee voted unanimously for the idea this month — in time for the 454-member class of 2016’s June 11 graduation.

School Superintendent Kenneth Salim said the district consulted with psychologists and others specializing in grief counseling, as well as parents and staff, before the School Committee unanimously adopted the policy on May 12.

“It was really important to have the input in navigating the research and the different challenges of coping and addressing a tragedy like a student death,’’ Salim said.

Parents will have a choice of receiving a diploma with their child’s graduating class, at a private ceremony, in the mail, or not at all.

Jankord said he and his wife plan to talk about the options with a family whose late son would have graduated this year.

The Jankords, who own Bob’s Muffin Shop in Columbian Square, also plan to continue giving scholarships to Weymouth High School students in Jonathan’s name — they gave $1,000 scholarships to 54 seniors last year and $500 scholarships to 21 seniors this year — and to continue raising awareness of youth suicide.

They’re doing it all in the name of their son because, Jankord said, “anybody who has lost a child, you just don’t want them to be forgotten.’’

Johanna Seltz can be reached at seltzjohanna@gmail.com.