YODER – As busses pulled up and cars rolled in, students made their way back to school Tuesday for the 2020-21 year at Southeast.
There was a different look to the students from previous years, as masks were the norm. Arriving as usual, the changes brought about in response to the novel coronavirus were immediately apparent.
Teachers and administrators met the students outside the elementary and high school entrances. Instead of heading to their lockers, greeting old friends and classmates, students were instead sent to view lists with their names and homeroom assignments.
“Mask up please,” “Welcome Back” and “Don’t go to your lockers for now,” were common statements for Mike Steben, a paraprofessional in the special education department at Southeast High School as he greeted returning students.
About 90% of students were in classes across the school for the first day, Principal Randy Epler said. Only about 10% of school families made the decision to take advantage of remote or virtual-learning options offered by Goshen County School District No. 1 administration, he said.
There weren’t too many concerns expressed over health or safety of face-to-face classes, Epler said. Most who made the decision to keep their students at home, at least for the start of the school year, were more concerned about the effects a potential interruption to in-person education would have on the students in the future.
“Most of it was for continuity of education,” Epler said, harkening back to the early days of the pandemic in March when schools across the state and country suddenly found themselves having to close.
Across the district, about 150 students will start the school year virtually or being homeschooled, Donna Fields, district curriculum director told The Telegram last week.
Overall, the hope is to make the school year as normal for students as possible, while assuring it’s also as safe as it can be, Epler said. One of his worries is students being exposed to the virus and having to lock down and quarantine as has happened as other schools across the country that have started up this month.
And there were mixed feelings about the masks students, teachers and staff are required to wear when social distancing is impossible or impractical. Some opted for the plain masks one might find in a doctor’s or dentist’s office while others masked up with a bit of flair.
There were prints, sports teams, and skeletal faces, among the variety of colors and decorations. Some went with the elastic-around-the-ears model while others sported the full cowl-type.
But a general consensus seemed to be the masks, while useful, were uncomfortable to varying degrees. But Shayna Thomas, 17, a SEHS senior, said there was one more consideration to be taken into account.
“It has to match my outfit.”
