With in-person school reopening, students have different views on whether they are going back or remaining virtual. On Apr. 6, seniors with last names A-K returned to in person school for the first week while seniors with last names L-Z went the following week. With the continuing transitioning of other grades into the mix, freshman, sophomores and juniors were added into the pattern of last names.

The in-person school schedule remains the same with periods one through four on Mondays and Thursday, six through eight on Tuesdays and Fridays and asynchronous instruction on Wednesdays. The same bell schedules are used as well with school starting at 9 a.m..

Alternating weeks with last names is a way to split the students attending school to keep a COVID-safe environment. Other methods were put in place to ensure the safety of students and staff with mask requirements and signs throughout the school to keep six feet distance between everyone. While some students signed up to return in-person, others decided to remain online. The option to remain online or return was available to all students, who share mixed opinions on how they feel about going back.

For seniors, the late start to returning back is what made many of them decide to remain online as they felt there was no point with graduation right around the corner. With the split of last names, not all students were able to attend at the same time, which didn’t allow students to be with all their friends. “I decided not to go back and remain doing school virtually. I think that going back to school for not even a full two months was pointless and I wasn’t even able to be with all my friends,” senior Kyler Hamlin said.

Getting back to a normal school schedule was something some students were looking forward to immensely. “I was so happy MCPS made plans to have students return in-person. Being online for all this year has made me miss having to wake up early for school. I’m glad to have a routine again and have school with some of my friends. I also am able to pay more attention being in school than online,” sophomore Tyler Cosgrove said.

The lack of social interaction with virtual school made school not enjoyable for some, which made going back in-person desirable due to the ability for them to be around teachers and students again. “Having classes online wasn’t the same as being in class in the classroom, I’m not able to talk to my classmates and it’s not the most exciting to stare at a screen all day. Returning to school has been so fun being able to hangout with friends and actually be around other people,” senior Riya Kohli said.

For some students getting used to online classes made returning to school all the more difficult. “I got really used to sleeping in and being able to do class from my bed, but I was looking forward to seeing my friends which is why I decided to go back to school. It was hard to actually be ready and dressed for school before 9 a.m. but going has been a positive change,” senior Sebastion Maldondo said.