Spring 2020 from a Distance
CLOSING OUT THE SCHOOL YEAR AMID A GLOBAL PANDEMIC b y KRISTI G A F F N EY, SM ES D IR EC TOR O F M A R K E TI N G A N D CO MM U N I C ATI O N S
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s students, faculty and staff eased out for St. Martin’s spring break in early-March, the unexpected happened that would dramatically affect the rest of the school year, and life in general. The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) was just on the national radar in February, but it became a screaming headline throughout the world just as SMES returned to campus to begin the second part of the spring semester. School was back in session for one week after spring break only to unexpectedly shut down for the remainder of the 2019-20 school year.
Virtual Band Performance
Let’s stay connected! • Warrior Talent Show (6 episodes strong!) faculty, staff and students of all ages participated • Core Values music playlist curated by SMES faculty and staff • SAGE at-home recipe videos • Coach Walker’s at-home 10-minute HIIT workouts • Coach McDaniel’s athome training exercises for each sport as well as general fitness resources for students and adults
After only one day of planning, teachers and administrators crafted distance learning programs at breakneck speed to bring a St. Martin’s education online. Many families were upended as the city shut down, and parents and teachers were forced to navigate working from home alongside their children. The St. Martin’s community came together in a brand new way, and “connection” was the name of the game. While planet Earth was rapidly shutting down, like everyone in the workforce, teachers juggled their own families from home working to provide a meaningful experience for their students. Many households juggled everything from on-the-move toddlers to hungry teens and barking dogs while still trying to work - and for many, it was a zoo. The unexpected need for at-home learning wasn’t without hiccups. Still, the bright spots and unwavering can-do attitude by so many made the very best of what was an impossible situation. Teachers rose to the challenge of providing creative learning solutions from educational ‘packets’ sent home to Early Childhood students with developmentally appropriate at-home projects to carefully crafted video lessons and live Zoom calls to deliver content or checkins. It wasn’t ideal, but it was filled with love guided by the goal to support a wholehearted education for St. Martin’s students. Were there misses along the way? Yes. Were there unexpected surprises? Yes. Were there successes well beyond expectations? Yes. Distance learning was uncharted territory fraught with both successes and challenges, but underneath it all was heart. We are happy to be back on campus with well-thought-out safety measures in place but are also fully-prepared to implement a variety of plans for closure should the need arise. Hindsight is truly 20/20 in 2020.
40 SUMMER 2020 | ST. MARTIN’S EPISCOPAL SCHOOL
