In the midst of a pandemic, the district is using an “abundance of caution” with the newly instituted safety regulations to prevent the spread of Covid-19 in our schools. Some of the changes were mandated by the state and others were executive decisions made by the district.

“The majority of the changes we have made have resulted from requirements made either at the state or county level,” Principal Matt Durst said. “Masks, hand sanitizer, desk cleaning, etcetera. These all originate with a state-level health order. ”

One of the major changes that caused controversy with the senior class is why they are not able to have lunch off-campus this semester. 

“We have been in this school system for almost 13 years and we are almost adults out on our own,” senior Alex Graban said. “I think it’s only fair to have some sort of freedom in our school day.”

Although the cause of this change was due to contact tracing between students, some are still pressing for their off-campus lunch.

“The push-back from seniors is completely understandable. Honestly, seniors have been very patient with the new hoops we are asking students to jump through,” Durst said. “I am hopeful they will get to experience some of the traditional senior perks before the end of the school year.”

Another positive change made this year was pushing the start time back an hour. The district made this change to allow for more time for teachers to prepare for the day, and for students to make their way to school without bussing.

“I think overall school starting at 9 am is better for reducing the monotonous feeling school can sometimes have, but I think the shorter periods provide more stress for assignments, ” Student Body President Cormac Maclae said.

Aside from the changes that were made for students, there were also changes made for teachers. To prevent close contact with students, teachers have been asked to stay in one designated area, which some teachers find challenging.

“I like to check with my students, look at the work they are doing, give immediate feedback,” forensics teacher Mara Hoover said. “I feel trapped at the front of the room.”

After a few weeks of school, students and teachers are settling into the new way of schooling.

“We are all adapting, so while it is making me uncomfortable, I believe we are all getting used to these new changes,” Hoover said.