To put it lightly, this past year has been an interesting one. When 2020 started, the last thing anyone expected was a global pandemic. March 12 will be the one year anniversary of the day the school announced we were taking a “two week” break for cleaning. It had been announced  earlier that all Montgomery county schools were being shut down, and everyone was waiting for the confirmation that this would include Boyertown. At first it was almost exciting- a surprise two week break, just as the weather was starting to warm up again. But soon everything was being shut down, and after the first month it was pretty clear we wouldn’t be going back to normal anytime soon.

After it was established the school wouldn’t be able to open back up, everyone began learning online, asynchronously. Teachers would post work in google classroom, and students would complete it. Some teachers offered zoom sessions for extra help, but it was always optional. Depending on who you talk to, you’ll get very different reactions of this time period (the start of “quarantine”). Some students loved the break- being able to do school whenever, wherever; the nice weather; less stress. However, some people felt the mental toll of no longer being able to see family and friends, participate in sports/ extracurriculars, and having to look at a screen constantly. It was definitely an experience no one was used to, and no one ever knew what to expect next.

As always summer came and left, and just like that it was back to school time. This past school year has felt like one crazy experiment. Boyertown was all virtual for the first month or so, before going hybrid. At first, lots of students were coming in two days a week. Things felt semi normal- sports were going on, things were opening back up. Then, around Christmas break, things seemed to go in the opposite direction. Less students were coming into the building, cases were rising, buildings were shutting down again. Eventually, though, things started looking up. Boyertown opened up the option of coming to school in person four days a week, with Wednesday remaining a virtual half day. Warmer weather is a reminder summer will be here soon, and hopefully next year will be a little more normal.

According to President Biden and Dr. Fauci, the vast majority of the population should be vaccinated by next school year. Vaccinations are coming in, with more and more people being eligible to receive them. Will that mean we can all go back to normal? At this point who knows. The good news is we definitely know a lot more than we did in March- and soon (hopefully), the US will be back to normal.