Seniors, teachers take new skills beyond pandemic

For the second straight year, the graduating class at Maricopa High School will collect their diplomas during the pandemic.

But while last year’s graduates had a traditional start to their senior year before COVID-19 forced changes to instruction and end-of-year events, the Class of 2021 had a somewhat opposite experience. Seniors started amid the public health emergency, but the last half of their school year has coincided with the vaccine rollout, relaxed restrictions and increasing optimism for a more-normal life as graduation and other senior year activities approach.

It is fitting seniors are scheduled to have a real graduation ceremony — though perhaps different — as a reward for their persistence through the pandemic. They have had to learn in new ways, embrace technology, make sacrifices and forgo being with their friends.

Their teachers and administrators have made some of the same adjustments to keep students on track.

We asked a group of MHS seniors and teachers to reflect on the 2020-2021 school year and how the challenges they met will serve them in the future.

SENIORS

OLIVIA BYERS

What new skill did you learn during the pandemic that you will use in the next chapter of your life? Over this past school year, I have truly learned how to overcome challenges, even those you least expect. Although not the ideal current situation, life will always go on and it becomes what you make of it.

What didn’t you get to do in this atypical year? I was really looking forward to participating in Powderpuff football and taking the W as a senior class! Although I was not able to do so, I am grateful for all the experiences I have been able to still participate in such as attending/competing in athletics, homecoming court and the athletic training student aid program.

How did you overcome the challenge of staying connected to friends and classmates? I overcame this challenge by making the choice to attend in-person school, staying involved in school activities and participating in athletics. Because of this I have been able to stay connected with my friends, classmates and teammates.

JACOB KEEL

What new skill did you learn during the pandemic that you will use in the next chapter of your life? I learned how to manage my time wisely and get everything done on time rather than wait until the last minute.

What didn’t you get to do in this atypical year? I would have liked to finish out my senior year of baseball, but I got hurt in the middle of the season, forcing me to sit out the rest of the year.

How did you overcome the challenge of staying connected to friends and classmates? I kept in touch with all of my friends through social media and hanging out by going out to eat or having campfires.

BROOKE SMITH

What new skill did you learn during the pandemic that you will use in the next chapter of your life? Because of COVID, I have learned to be more technologically strong, given that all of our work is online. I’ve also gotten better at talking to people because trying to communicate through the internet is difficult.

What didn’t you get to do in this atypical year? This year has had a lot of challenges. Many of the senior events that make our senior year special got canceled including homecoming, attending football games, senior trip and many more. Prom and graduation are scheduled to happen, so that’s a relief.

How did you overcome the challenge of staying connected to friends and
classmates? This year really has affected friendships, especially with blocked scheduling, quarantining and the choice to be an in-person or online student. Connecting with friends has been hard this year. I’m looking forward to summer though, so I can have more guaranteed time with them.

TEACHERS

GRANT HANKS
MATHEMATICS DEPARTMENT

What was the biggest change that went surprisingly well? The biggest change was the transition to teaching online and integrating new technology in the classroom. I was worried I wouldn’t be able to teach some concepts virtually as effectively as in person. I was also overwhelmed with how many resources were available and if I could effectively utilize them.

After some professional development and some trial and error, I found several things that worked well for me. I have also been pleased with how resilient the students have been in adapting to the changes in how they are being taught this year.

What new skills will you continue to use post-pandemic? I will continue to use many of the virtual tools I learned about this year moving forward and see if I can discover more that will be beneficial.

What was your biggest challenge? The biggest challenge has been not seeing all my students every day. There is a large portion of my students that I have not had the opportunity to meet in person this year. I love my job because I get to interact with such amazing students each day.

KEVIN PIQUETTE
PERFORMING ARTS CENTER
TECHNICAL DIRECTOR / TECHNICAL
THEATER INSTRUCTOR

What was the biggest change that went surprisingly well? The biggest change that went well was the technology integration. It was a big change for everyone, and I think it was handled as well as it could have been.

What new skills will you continue to use post-pandemic? The biggest skill I will utilize moving forward is the use of virtual classrooms to deliver information. This proved to be a very efficient way to provide resources to students in a consistent way.

What was your biggest challenge? The biggest challenge for me was in relationship-building. It is much harder to learn about students’ lives, personalities and struggles when you are interacting with a thumbnail on the screen.

MICHELLE MILLS
U.S. HISTORY AND ECONOMICS

What was the biggest change that went surprisingly well? The biggest challenge that went well for me was becoming more familiar with Google Classroom. I can actually plan ahead and put in future assignments and just assign them when ready.

What new skills will you continue to use post-pandemic? I will continue to try and build relationships with the students. I knew it was important but it’s even more so now.

What was your biggest challenge? The biggest challenge was not having faces to look at when I taught online. I like to see my students and I can gauge how things are going. Online, we can’t do that.

JUAN GARAVITO
12TH GRADE ENGLISH

What was the biggest change that went surprisingly well? The handling of concurrent classes. Not saying that it was easy, because it really wasn’t, but surprisingly it worked. It did require some extra work, but ultimately, I think it worked for both myself and the student.

What new skills will you continue to use post-pandemic? Anything Google-oriented, being able to expand my knowledge on everything that Google has to offer has been great when it comes to planning, assessments and projects.

What was your biggest challenge? Getting comfortable with being in front of a camera.

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This story appears in the May issue of InMaricopa magazine.