By Sushant Kunwar and Grahm Reynolds
At the time of writing this article, there has been two school weeks of a full in-person school model. The road to this return was a long and hard one. This return was possible due to the combined efforts of parents, teachers, and all other members of the Branford Public Schools community.
Opinions on this issue—as always— are varied among faculty and staff.
“{Virtual learning is} not fun. Many people break the rules and don’t follow the guidelines. Lunch specifically is really bad,” said junior Andrii Tychenok. Lunch now is more packed than ever. Tables now seat three kids rather than two, with masking tape marking areas students are allowed to sit. Although students are encouraged to put their masks on after they are done eating, many don’t. This can cause concern among members of the community, as demonstrated by Tychenok.
Andrew Bono, a fellow junior, has similar sentiments.
“Socializing is great but the hallways and the classrooms can get pretty crowded,” said Bono. Hallways look like they used to, with students and faculty alike walking through them. As before, hallways and staircases during passing time are marked as one way, with students and faculty having to follow arrows taped to the floor. This is in place to mitigate the amount of people in one area, and to remain safe with the increased number of students.
Up until several weeks ago, BHS were divided into two cohorts, each group coming to school two days a week with Wednesday as a full remote day. On April 5 that ended and now students come to school five days a week. There is still an option for virtual learning and classes are still taught in the hybrid model.
Teachers are optimistic about this change, hoping for more normal class environments. “It’s really exciting to have students back in the classrooms,” said Spanish teacher Elise Weisenbach. “The enthusiasm in the student to student interactions is really invigorating.”
The classrooms have been buzzing with students and a new sense of liveliness, several teachers said. The sentiment is mutual from an administrative standpoint as well.
“My overall impression is that I’m not surprised how seriously the students are adhering to safety protocols. I’m also pleased to see more students coming back in-school,” said Vice Principal Joseph Briganti. “I can see and feel the excitement with more people in school. The progress BHS has made in this situation is reassuring, and it’s great to see people back in school and adhering to the guidelines.”
Branford High School has taken its first step towards normalcy past the pandemic. The school is fluttering with optimism, some more careful than others. There is a long way to go before reaching a truly normal school experience, but it can be said with certainty that BHS is putting in the effort to expedite this process while still ensuring the safety of the students and faculty.
