With COVID still present and getting worse each week, GHS was forced to shut down all in-person classes for the rest of the semester.  Many saw the move to be shocking, but with the rising cases and close contact, school administrators felt that it was the safest decision the school could have made.

“The biggest challenge is that there is yet ANOTHER change,” principal Steve Lodes  said.  “Everyone yearns for consistency and predictability and that is hard to get this year, even in small doses. For teachers, making yet another shift in planning is hard. For students, living yet another shift in learning is confusing. Maintaining a hybrid approach to engaging students while virtual further strains instructional time and academic relationships.”  

For students who were already full virtual, not much has changed at all.  “There were no big differences with my classes because I already was virtual,” junior Megan Mellock said.  “It was nice to not go through that transition and switch to all virtual like everyone else.”

Part of Mellock’s decision to go full virtual first semester was because she thought this would most likely happen.  “I did expect the school to go virtual, but I thought it would be a lot sooner, especially with Halloween and sports going on,” Mellock said.

Senior Keegan Kapocius  wishes he had his senior year the way many wanted theirs.  “I’d prefer 5 days in school definitely,” Kapocius said.  Kapocius is very vocal about his opinion and speaks for many of his peers with his words.  “We should enjoy our last year in Greendale instead of being scared of a virus with a 99.7 survival rate among us students.”

This move has not only had a big affect on students, but teachers as well.  ASL teacher, Jennifer McCauley, has had trouble communicating with her style of language on the computers.  “Unfortunately, I have had to use my voice more while teaching to keep students’ eyes on the screen,” McCauley said.  “It’s pretty hard to communicate in sign language if I can’t see you.”

So with school being put on full virtual till the end of the first semester, students and staff members are trying their hardest to get into the right mindset and see the bright side of what’s to come.  This year has been full of surprises, but we are still unsure of how many surprises are left.