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Photos by Erin Nelson.
The sign in front of Vestavia Hills High School reading “School and Campus Closed” on March 26. In late March, Gov. Kay Ivey and state Superintendent Eric Mackey announced students would not return to school this year, with all instruction moving outside of a physical classroom.
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Photos by Erin Nelson.
Signs that read “You Matter” and “Don’t Give Up” move in the wind in the desolate parking lot at Vestavia Hills High School.
With the COVID-19 disease bringing unprecedented changes for the 2019-20 school year, Vestavia Hills City Schools Superintendent Todd Freeman said the school system must rely on the fundamentals.
“We have great instructional leaders, our teachers,” Freeman said. “We have excellent administrators, and we have wonderfully committed and involved parents. When you put that formula together, in times that are stable, or in times that are in crisis, you go back to those fundamentals, and we’re able to do that.”
Freeman said while no one could be fully prepared for the impact of the new coronavirus, Vestavia Hills schools were as prepared as they could be. The biggest challenge, he said, is the unknown.
In late March, Gov. Kay Ivey and state Superintendent Eric Mackey announced students would not return to school this year, with all instruction moving outside of a physical classroom.
Trying to figure out how to make such a massive shift, and all of the implications that come with it, such as what to do with graduating seniors, how to handle grading, and more, has sometimes felt like “designing the aircraft as you’re flying it,” Freeman said.
VIRTUAL EDUCATION
On April 6, teachers began teaching students virtually. The state sent schools several different options for completing the school year and identified critical standards of instruction that needed to be met.
Aimee Rainey, assistant superintendent of teaching and learning, said the school district is working with teachers and parents to ensure they have what they need.
The school year will end May 21, as originally planned.
“Our whole plan has been built around stability,” Freeman said.
It’s important for parents to understand the school is only losing 10 instructional days, and the majority of standards have already been taught, Freeman said.
Students are learning both synchronously, using Google Hangout to learn at the same time, and asynchronously, with work done individually by each student, Rainey said.
The high school is working with seniors on essays, college applications and whatever else they need to finish their high school career and prepare for college.
Mackey said seniors who were on track to graduate and in good standing at the end of the third nine-week reporting period were considered "as meeting the graduation requirements" for the state of Alabama.
While they will graduate, seniors will also lose the last few months of their senior year.
Seniors have “lost all of those ‘last things,’” such as their prom, Rainey said.
It’s a priority for the school system to honor and celebrate them, Freeman said. However, as of mid-April, while the school district said they will honor seniors in some way, no definite plans had been made.
Students with special needs are also being helped during this time. Special education teachers are using virtual visits to meet with students, and those students have every opportunity traditional students have when it comes to using technology to receive their education, Rainey said.
As for grading, grades from the third nine-week period will generally stand as final grades for the semester, but students will have a chance to improve those grades during the fourth nine-week period.
All employees are still being paid and on April 6 began a modified schedule, allowing them to work from home, Freeman said. Rainey said the central office has established expectations for each employee as they work remotely.
Registration began April 20, as did enrollment. Both of those services are offered on the school’s website, vestavia.k12.al.us. Documentation that is required can be provided digitally.
A HELPING HAND
One of the “silver linings” of the coronavirus pandemic has been the school’s partnership with Leadership Vestavia Hills, which raised money to purchase meals from local restaurants and feed students during spring break and is now providing meals every Friday to students in need.
Breakfast and lunch are both being provided by the school system, with Mondays and Wednesdays serving as pickup days at Vestavia Hills Elementary West and Vestavia Hills Elementary Cahaba Heights.
The virus is not expected to impact ongoing capital projects, including the move to the new Pizitz Middle School campus on Columbiana Road. The current facility will transition to a ninth-grade campus for the high school.
Patrick Martin, assistant superintendent of operations and services, said most of the construction at the new Pizitz campus is in the “punch list” phase, and no delays are expected.
Freeman said he also doesn’t expect any delays to the start of the next school year.