Junior Clea Gaïtas Sur

For the moment, I do not think that a shift to distance learning is the right choice for SPA. Although the last two weeks at school haven’t felt as safe as the rest of the year, the case numbers at SPA are still relatively low, especially when compared to other schools in Saint Paul. SPA has taken appropriate precautions to prevent the spread of the Omicron variant, and I think that the school’s resources are better spent on keeping students in school (the on-site testing center, giving students testing kits) rather than on distance learning materials. However, I think the greatest lesson the Omicron variant has taught us is that Covid guidelines must be malleable and that we must learn to constantly shift our strategies. While at this time I do not believe that distance learning is the right strategy, that does not mean that distance learning will not be the right strategy in the future. SPA should take advantage of this time period to discuss distance learning in the future and create some standards for when SPA should shift.