This fall is the first time in a year and a half that West has been in person. But what can we do to keep it that way? As a school and as a community, what are we doing to prevent the spread of coronavirus and keep students and staff healthy? 

Since COVID-19 hit Utah, West High has taken all possible measures to keep students from getting sick. Back in May of 2019, West closed down in-person school and switched to remote learning. They continued the 2020-2021 school year online, only switching to a hybrid option during the last half of the year, when cases began to fall. Since moving back in-person, West has required social distancing, encouraged vaccination, and even assigned staff to remind students to keep masks on. 

   West High has done a lot to keep students safe and prevent the spread of COVID-19, but what can it do better? I asked West High students Vienna Preciado and Anahi Martinez about their opinion on COVID protocol at West. During our interview, they emphasized the importance of wearing masks and proper sanitation. They agree that most students are doing well with masking, but think West’s sanitation can be improved:

“At lunch, students are not throwing away their trash. Although our custodians do so well at keeping [West] clean, it is our responsibility as students to clean up after ourselves—for the health of others and ourselves.” Like Vienna says, students can do much better when cleaning up after themselves. A lot of used masks end up in parking lots, on the South Lawn, or littered around the school. By cleaning up after ourselves, West’s students can do our part to prevent the spread of COVID-19, making West a cleaner and safer place.

Another important thing to consider is the impact of COVID-19 on West students’ mental health. Let’s dive into what student Anahi Martinez had to say about this. COVID-19 had a huge impact on Anahi mentally and physically. During online school, she felt shut out; too much time without seeing her friends made it difficult for her to socialize. Although Anahi was able to communicate with others online, it wasn’t the same. And the pandemic didn’t just affect her mentally—Anahi caught COVID-19 as well. The aftereffects of COVID still mess with her, making it difficult to concentrate or even catch her breath now that school is back in session.

COVID has made a huge impact on students’ lives and on the world in general. There are many ways of keeping school safe, but all of them require the help of us students. By wearing masks, social distancing, and picking up after ourselves, we can each do our part to stop the spread of COVID-19 preventing further shutdowns and ensuring a safe learning environment for every West student.