As schools across the country closed for at least two weeks in early March, I could not envision how this pandemic would alter the second half of my high school experience. Soon after Northern and other schools closed for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year, there was an overwhelming show of support for the senior class because of the cancellation of many events that are anticipated at the end of senior year, like graduation and prom. The school district provided the families of seniors with signs that celebrated these students, which could be seen throughout Dillsburg. Other gestures of support, like the spectacle at the football field every Friday and the billboard showcasing seniors in front of Giant, are all appropriate in celebrating the class of 2020 as they graduated, but this has left me wondering: where that support is for the class of 2021?
The spread of Coronavirus has left the class of 2021 with three-quarters of a normal junior year and a projected year of hybrid education for the 2020-2021 school year. Throughout this fall, we have not been able to participate in or experience events that are quintessential to the core of the high school experience, such as homecoming, football games, assemblies, and sharing classes with friends. It can be expected that the spring of our senior year will closely resemble the fall, even as vaccines are distributed, thus causing prom and graduation plans to be uncertain for the second year at Northern. The discontinuation or alteration of aspects of high school has left many of the senior class isolated from the community at Northern High School. The disconnect between students throughout the fall is only exacerbated by the district’s lack of recognition for the class of 2021 compared to the class of 2020. As of now, I feel that the district and the high school have done little to showcase the achievements of seniors or to aid them as they make the progression from high school to college or to the workforce.
The struggle to work around the pandemic while maintaining safety guidelines is challenging for those involved with education, so it is understandable that the administration cannot give a certain class extra attention. In order to improve the remainder of the year, there are plenty of socially distanced ideas that celebrate the class of 2021. The yard signs that the families of seniors received last year could be brought back for the class of 2021. Another opportunity to appreciate the achievements of this years’ seniors could be a bulletin board or showcase that displays the plans of the class of 2021 after graduation. This display would allow the senior class to stay informed on where other classmates intend to go after leaving the halls of Northern High School. As the 2020-2021 school year ends, the school could arrange a senior spirit week to recognize the graduating class. Each day could have a different theme that would relate to seniors, like senioritis day, college gear day, career day, or senior citizen day. A spirit week would be a light-hearted way to show support for the seniors while operating under a hybrid schedule. Although the entirety of the senior class cannot gather indoors, the school could potentially arrange a senior sunrise or sunset where students could gather in cars or socially distanced in the parking lot. An event such as a senior sunrise provides another opportunity for the class of 2021 to remain connected during our final year at Northern. These ideas are small ways that the administration could promote student connection while supporting the class of 2021 through the spring.
There are many more prominent issues that are results of the Coronavirus pandemic, but the lack of a “normal” high school experience, which is an outcome of the pandemic, is a relevant issue to thousands of high school seniors throughout America and within this community. The importance of the school’s appreciation of its students demonstrates the need for further administrative involvement in the lives of the senior class.
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