‘There was just so much unknown’

MT. PLEASANT -- The Mt. Pleasant Community School District has managed to navigate the ups and downs of 2020, including Superintendent John Henriksen, who has led the school district through the COVID-19 pandemic.

After an abrupt shutdown in March, and a turbulent spring trying to make sense of the global pandemic, the district was left with three months to plan for what the pandemic might entail for schools, with minimal guidance from the Iowa Department of Education, the state or the federal government.

Facing unprecedented challenges, the district worked its way around the problem and began preparing a return-to-learn plan for the fall semester. The document, required by the state, did its best to predict what a return to school would look like for students and staff but 'there were just so many unknowns.”

'It was very difficult, because we just didn't know. There was just so much unknown. I felt like we needed a little more direction from the Iowa department of Education, just on how to come back to school, what coming back to school could look like,” Henriksen said.

However, the district managed to keep it going, to stay in school, and to stay face-to-face for most of the first semester.

'I believe it's gone almost as well as it could have, and we have stayed in school, which is so important,” Henriksen said.

The district's success in navigating the pandemic can be partially attributed to some changes in state protocol - adjustments made as more information came in about coronavirus. One major change included the governor's decision to redefine close contacts and close contact quarantines in September. As long as both people were wearing masks, the exposed person would not have to quarantine for 14 days. Instead they could stay in school or work.

The district had to adjust to some unknown complications of the coronavirus on schools including addressing spread among the teacher and the adult population rather than among students.

A staffing shortage caused the district to move the middle school building to a hybrid model in late November. The time in the new model allowed the middle school to adjust their teaching staff to cover more students.

'We, like other districts, have struggled with the adult absences, which caused us to go to hybrid learning at the middle school for a short period. Right now we're looking at a pretty good trend staffing wise, where we can manage that and maintain face-to-face,” Henriksen said.

'We've had to deal with a lot more adult absences that we would typically have, so that's been a challenge,” he added.

Looking into the second semester, the district plans to remain in its face-to-face model, addressing absences and other issues through a focused approach.

The largest change the district is expected to undergo heading into January is in its remote learning program. With its return-to-learn plan set in fall, the district contracted teachers from within the district to create and teach online curriculum. However, the large program of 130 students has strained the district's teaching staff while they have had to tend to online learners, and in-person students.

To help lighten the workload on district teachers, the district recently approved an online learning vendor, Edgenuity, for the second semester that would provide curriculum and teachers for remote learners. The district also restricted the program to fragile health students, and students already enrolled in remote learning who successfully pass the first semester.

'We have good reviews from other school district's that have been using Edgenuity, so we'll see how that implementation in the semester goes for us,” Henriksen said.

'It's been a difficult, heavy lift for our teachers who have been trying to support that,” he added.

The district amended its return-to-learn plan to remove percentages related to positivity rate in the county, which restricted its ability to make quality decisions for students and staff. It replaced those specific metrics with broader language that take into account additional factors in their decisions than before. The superintendent said it provides the district flexibility when making decisions moving forward.

As the district focused on navigating the pandemic, Henriksen said it caused the district to understand the importance of its role in the community.

'The safety of our students and staff is priority, then after safety is the education of the students, which is best done in a face-to-face model,” Henriksen said.