According to the reopening plan, the ultimate goal is for students to reach one year of academic growth by Memorial Day. In order to achieve this goal, the administration has laid out a reopening plan. Here is a guide that outlines everything that applies to students this year, so no one has to flip through a giant 16 page document!

The “Color Code” & School Year Segments

As the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic changes, the in-person learning options available to students will change. The reopening plan outlines a color code, with each color meaning a different type of on-campus experience. This is the chart provided by reopening committee:

Students are only given a choice as to whether they wish to attend on-campus classes or remote classes on yellow and green days. The school year has been broken up into smaller segments, and students can choose whether they would like to be remote or in-person for each. Students may change between remote and on-campus learning in the middle of a segment if the change is due to safety protocols or an unplanned event. Teachers have made their curriculum roughly correspond with the duration of segments.

This Year’s Scheduling

This year’s schedule is the same as last year’s remote schedule, with Monday and Thursday being Gold Days and Tuesday and Friday being Black Days. Furthermore, Wednesdays will still remain personalized learning days, where everyone will stay home regardless of whether they chose to be a remote or in-person student.

Staggered start and end times have been introduced this year to prevent too many students on-campus at once. This means that Freshmen will always have the first block of the day free, and the same with Sophomores at the end of the day, regardless of the day rotation. There are no limits to how many free periods Juniors and Seniors can have as long as they are in good academic standing and are on track with credits. Off-campus now extends to everyone, so there is more flexibility within when students can enter and leave campus if they don’t have class. Here is this year’s official schedule (has been updated as of the week of 9/28):

Occasionally, White Days will need to be scheduled (the new schedule changes as of the week of 9/28 did not include a new schedule for white days, but this will be updated if there is a change):

Some elective courses have been redesigned or are not scheduled this year to aid teachers in being more present in supporting students. Teachers are doing their best to plan lessons collaboratively so that students who wish to transition between remote and on-campus classes will be able to do so with as little difficulty as possible. Advisors are supposed to serve as something called “Anchoring Adults” for each student to communicate frequently with their advisees and their families.

Grading

To make grading more transparent, assessments are supposed to be entered into Empower, which all students and parents will have access to. Progress reports will still be distributed at specific parts of the year, however these dates have not been specified.

Information for Remote Students

For students who opt to learn remotely, they should know that all teachers will use Google Classroom to post assignments and announcements, and Google Calendar to post due dates, just like last year. This year, cameras are required to be on during Zoom meetings. Make sure to pay attention to your schedule and Google Classroom, as that is how you will receive information about Zoom meetings or class activities. Also remember to keep track of break times and when classes begin/end.

Information for On-Campus Students 

As students who have gone back to school in person have noticed, there are a multitude of changes made to the way Souhegan is operating. But, for those who are online but planning on joining in-person for a future session, there are some things you need to know. First of all, to avoid crowds in communal areas in the morning. students are expected to go to their classes as soon as they arrive at school. Masks are to be worn at all times in the building unless you are drinking, and all hallways and stairways are either one way or are marked with tape showing which direction you can walk in. Masks can be removed when students are outside and at least six feet away from others. Additionally, all students have been given off-campus privileges as long as their parents sign the off-campus form and they use PowerSchool to sign in and out. Finally, if students do not have the means to go off-campus for free periods or classes being taught remotely, areas have been set up in the building for students to attend classes or do work safely. 

Whether you’re attending school on-campus or online, school this year isn’t like any other thing we’ve experienced. The transition into this year has been difficult for all of us, as many facets of our lives have changed because of this pandemic. But the Souhegan Community will continue to stick together through these uncertain times. Go Sabers, and happy fall!

Author’s Note: Sorry about the low resolution images! some of the tables were too big for me to screenshot all at once, so I had to either zoom out and make the text smaller. They should still be readable. Additionally, apologies for how late this article came out! Hopefully it will still be helpful.