So much has happened since our last newsletter. One of the fantastic things about the Met
design; it’s agile. We have been able to innovate and create new opportunities for our
students throughout the pandemic. Our staff see challenges as opportunities to innovate,
not as obstacles. Our learning plans allow us flexibility in planning student time and
resources available, and our system of evaluation can flex and may even benefit from the
online world.
When we were told on March 13 that we would need to close the doors, it took us all by
surprise. One week later, we were up and running. We had the technology in place that was
needed to maintain communication. We also had talented tech staff and administrators who
were there to help fill the gaps if a home was without Internet or Chromebooks required
repair. We developed systems to allow staff and students to safely pick up supplies and
materials needed for remote learning or college classes. As we started to welcome staff and
students back to the buildings, our maintenance team went above and beyond
reconfiguring classrooms, deep cleaning all surfaces, and upgrading our HVAC systems. We
have added the needed signage, hired additional staff to do health screenings, developed
internal systems to monitor for outbreaks, and worked with the Department of Health and
the Department of Education to make the best decisions. We’ve even taken our recruitment
efforts virtual, and we just completed our first Zoom open house (details about additional
open houses can be found on pages 13 and 14). We’ve dedicated much of this newsletter
to images gathered since the beginning of this school year. We wanted to give you a look
inside the Met even though we cannot invite you in at this time.
In addition to the pandemic, this fall has been a tumultuous political period for our country.
We have all experienced an election like no other. We cannot ignore the protests, the
opposing views, the disagreements, or the divisive nature of politics. As educators, we are
not here to forward our own opinions. We want our students to be critical thinkers,
understand the media sources they consume, be good citizens, and be active participants in
their communities. When they have the opportunity to vote, we hope that they feel
prepared to make informed choices.
Nancy and Dennis
