Since Governor Jay Inslee announced that for the rest of the school year, students will have to take their classes online due to COVID-19, a lot of students are realizing just how much they enjoyed being in the halls of Camas High School. The closure is actually bad news for many students who enjoyed going to school and seeing their friends and teachers regularly.
The stay-at-home order went into effect March 23, and, as a result, students are going through many different emotions as they see a myriad of events and programs being canceled.
CHS Senior and an actress in the school’s spring musical, Isabella Rhodes, says, “I’m really sad that the musical was canceled the day of what was supposed to be opening night. On the other hand, I’m glad school was canceled when it was so that Washington could be more prepared to slow down the pandemic curve.” Rhodes and everyone working on the musical put in a lot of work and were upset about its cancelation.
Rhodes, along with many other students, wished she could have known school would be closing at the beginning of the day so that she could have said goodbye to all her friends.
Junior Olivia Kuhnel is not a big fan of doing online learning because she misses the social aspect school brings. Kuhnel says, “I don’t like the fact that we can’t go back to school because doing everything online and not being able to see my friends or teachers in person makes the situation a lot harder.”
And since Rhodes is a senior, the following year looks very different for her than it does to the underclassmen. Rhodes says, “I’ll probably be a little anxious about starting a new year in a new school because I didn’t receive the final hands-on education to boost my confidence in my classes.” However, she looks forward to coming back to the school to see the plays and musicals that will be put on, even if she is no longer a CHS student who can participate first-hand.
Regarding graduation, Rhodes says, “I’ve been counting down the days until I could walk down the aisle during graduation and now it seems like they want to do a virtual one, which really sucks.” She says she would prefer to just do a ceremony in the summer to fully appreciate all the hard work the seniors have gone through. “To be told ‘good job’ after a conference call is definitely not ideal.” Still, administrators and staff are doing the best they can to ensure seniors have a memorable, positive experience.
Rhodes says she will not miss the crowded hallways or the chaos this year has brought, while Kuhnel does not miss the traffic in the morning, getting up early, and having back to back classes. But both said the reason they miss school is being able to see their friends.