As lunch begins, two Sage Valley students walk to find shade.
Principals see silver lining on first day of school
Students across Campbell County School District (CCSD) returned to their respective schools for the first time today since their abrupt closing last spring following a district-wide closure in March due to COVID-19.
Stocktrail off to smooth start
Stocktrail Elementary School Principal Dr. Keri Shannon said that her students and staff are adapting to the recently introduced guidelines and restrictions even better than expected.
“It’s been a really great morning, actually,” Shannon said during an interview Monday. “All the things we were worried about have worked out fine.”
Months of planning were devoted to the district’s reopening, on both state and local levels, Shannon said.
To assist schools in the reopening process, Wyoming Department of Education Superintendent Jillian Balow released the Smart Start Guidance Packet in July that advised districts to create a three-tiered plan that would allow students statewide to continue schooling in the event that state public health orders prohibit on-site education or limit indoor gathering sizes.
Like many other districts, CCSD reopened schools on a tier one basis, in which all enrolled students can attend school on-site as opposed to tier two in which students would rotationally attend school two to three days of the week while completing online courses for the remainder of the week, or tier three that would require students to complete classes online.
Opening under tier one, the district adapted several aspects of learning to minimize the risk of COVID-19 transmission among students and staff. Protective equipment such as shields, face coverings, hand sanitizers, gloves and surface disinfectants have been implemented in CCSD schools and used as directed by Wyoming Department of Health.
Shannon said that despite some of the concerned comments coming from the community, her students are adjusting well to the new implementations, even those who are brand new to the school.
“I just came back from the kindergarten classrooms,” Shannon said. “Not a tear in sight.”
Prior to the first day of school, Shannon admitted she was concerned, specifically for the younger students who hadn’t been to school in over five months.
Ready for Learning and Kindergarten students were invited to open house events to familiarize themselves with the school environment, while older elementary schoolers were not given a chance to meet their teachers or see their classrooms prior to Monday morning.
Shannon predicted that first and second graders would feel some anxiety toward missing open house, but noted that returning to school would be greatly beneficial for them.
“I was a little nervous for the younger kids,” she repeated. “But they’ve been inside the school before and they’re used to the layout, they’ve done a great job today.”
For the most part, she said, her students are grateful to be back in the building after their run-in with adapted learning last spring and the eventless summer that followed.
“I think they’re excited to be back in school,” said Shannon. “We’re doing everything we can to maintain the health and safety of our students, so we can keep them in school.”
Sage Valley social distances
Sage Valley Junior High School Principal Adam Miller said that he has been “forced” to implement creative tactics for social distancing, while simultaneously extending a “thanks for your cooperation” to his students by rewarding them with the option to eat lunch outside.
Since CCSD junior high schools have begun dividing their students into four lunch groups, Miller said social distancing is possible inside Sage Valley’s lunchroom.
“I’ve wanted to introduce outdoor lunches for a couple of years,” Miller commented. “Now, COVID-19 has kind of forced us into it, which I think is great.”
Miller and a few other staff members oversaw the outdoor eating session, requesting things like “you three girls, scoot down this way a few feet,” or “give each other some space,” as students dispersed themselves along stairs, benches and the grassy hill on which Sage Valley sits.
Miller said that students at Sage Valley have been cooperative with the guidelines and restrictions up to this point, going on to say he hopes student can recognize the staff’s efforts to maintain the most normal-feeling school flow possible.
“We’re trying to make these changes as painless as possible for them and they’ve done a pretty good job of helping us out.”
CCHS covers up
At Campbell County High School (CCHS), Principals Chad Bourgeois, Chris Rashleigh and Jason Garman greeted students as they shuffled back inside, returning from open campus lunch. While Garman waited at the entrance with a package of disposable masks in his hand, Bourgeois and Rashleigh directed students to their classrooms.
“We’re requiring face coverings in areas where we won’t be social distanced,” Garman said as several passing high schoolers, who were all wearing cloth face coverings, avoided eye contact.
“There have been a few students who’ve asked for one,” he shrugged.
Since the school district has implemented various methods of transmission prevention, several principals have been pleasantly surprised by the results they’re seeing on their respective campus’ tied to CCSD’s Reopening Plan.
The Wyoming Department of Health provides COVID-19 case, variant, death, testing, hospital and vaccine data online. The department also shares information about how the data can be interpreted. COVID-19 safety recommendations are available from the CDC.
