COVID-19 affected the whole word including the SJA community by going virtual in the spring of 2020. The lockdown was almost two years ago, how does the global pandemic still affect our schooling now? Are there any more restrictions in place? 

The first day of lockdown in the U.S. was March 28, 2020. There have been almost 2 million cases of covid and 21 thousand people have died. The SJA community has been impacted through the past years by experiencing several online and hybrid models and dealing with many restrictions. Some have been lifted and put back into place with the fluctuation of cases. Now, the community is finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel while the cases decrease and life begins returning to pre-pandemic ways. 

COVID-19 first affected the school when SJA went virtual. 

Mrs. Sarah Boul, Theology teacher, remembers the early days of COVID well.

“When Covid happened we weren’t home during spring break and there was a lot of unknown,” Mrs. Boul said. 

When resuming in the fall, the school was hybrid and everyone kept a distance of six feet. Restrictions were still relevant when everyone returned to school such as: quarantining for two weeks when exposed, contact tracing, and keeping strict distance when masks were off. 

Ms Anna Hotop, Director of Campus Ministry, is on the Covid Team Board for St. Joe.

“We followed the guidance of the CDC and St. Louis Department of Health when putting these restrictions into place,” Ms. Hotop said. 

These restrictions lessened when the 2021-2022 school year began with wearing masks and being quarantined once testing positive. The SJA community went mask situational during the spring semester and soon followed with mask optional. The question is now, how is it still affecting our schooling today?

The protocols have lessened since the beginning of the pandemic, but are still relevant. If a student is having symptoms, she should not show up to school because she would be putting students and faculty at risk. If any student at SJA tests positive, they are directed to fill out the form that informs the school that she is sick with COVID-19. Then, she is to follow the doctor’s orders and stay quarantined for five days. If the student is feeling better after those five days, she is welcome to come back to school and wear a mask for the following five days as well.

 Contact tracing is not imputed into the protocols, so it is any student’s responsibility to quarantine if they are feeling sick and/or know someone who has recently gotten COVID-19. All students should do their duty in keeping the community safe and stay home if they are feeling sick.