Haines Borough School District students, teachers and staff have made it through the first quarter without having to close while maintaining in-person learning.

This week, three schools in the Mat-Su district closed due to COVID-19 virus cases, bringing the total to six. Most Kenai schools also closed this week.

“We made it to the end of October, the end of the first quarter,” superintendent Roy Getchell said. “It’s gone fast. It hasn’t always seemed like that. It’s gone exceptionally well. That doesn’t mean it’s been exceptionally easy or perfect.”

Among the mitigation measures, students and staff must wear face coverings, children enter and exit the school through designated entryways, different grade levels maintain their own pods within the school and parents are expected to screen children for symptoms before sending them to school.

Teachers are provided voluntary, free testing every two weeks. Roughly 30 of the 45 staff members take advantage of the testing, Getchell said, and others take free tests at the SEARHC clinic on weekends.

Students are required to stay home if they display symptoms of COVID-19. If they don’t get tested, they must remain home for 10 days. If they receive negative test results and have no fever, they may return.

So far 20 students have had to stay home longer than a week as a result of quarantine protocols, said principal Lilly Boron. Fourteen students are attending classes virtually and 67 students are enrolled in homeschool, up from about 18 homeschooled students last year.

Getchell said heading into flu season will bring new challenges. Last year dozens of students and multiple staff members were out sick, so many that Getchell was in conversation with local health experts about the possibility of closing the school for a short period. He said he hopes COVID-19 virus mitigations will help decrease the spread of other strains of colds and flus.

“Every one of those COVID symptoms is on the list of students who have to be sent home,” Getchell said. “Whenever we do things with sanitation and all the other things, we’re preventing other illnesses that may present like COVID that would keep kids or staff out of school. So far, I think that’s been very successful.”

Jenae Larson, the kindergarten teacher, is a first-time Haines School staff member. She said when the school year began she was initially nervous about keeping students and staff safe. She said it’s been challenging for her students who are unable to share learning tools and other supplies, which makes cooperative learning difficult if not impossible.

She also had doubts that her students could maintain proper social distance or keep masks on their faces, but said so far she’s been pleasantly surprised.

“I have had very few instances where I remind students to put their mask back on or to give each other space,” Larson said. “We have had a few lessons on why we wear a mask right now, and what social distancing means, and they all completely understood. We are very open and honest in the classroom about why we must take these precautions. It goes to show that kids really are so adaptable, and we should give them more credit for that.”

Larson said she’s impressed by how the school staff and students, along with parents and community members, have worked together and been supportive to keep students in the classroom.

“During a time like this, we all know to work together and help out where it’s needed, and everyone is just happy to be here and glad school is open again,” Larson said.

Boron is also a first-time principal and never expected her first year to entail leading the school through a pandemic. Boron said while it’s been challenging, it’s a first for everyone else, too.

“There have been many times where I’ve thought, ‘Wow, I don’t think I quite planned this right.’ The reality is I’m working with an incredible administrative team, an incredible staff, supportive parents and a supportive community. We’re all new at this, this year. This situation has been a great leveler.”

Getchell and Boron are on the school’s new health advisory committee with SEARHC clinic medical director Lylith Widmer and nurse Keely Baumgartner. The committee meets weekly to make decisions on the latest information regarding the pandemic.