Our district was “hybrid” for three quarters of that school year with all students returning to in-person learning in March of 2021. Students who chose to attend in-person that year were divided such that half of the students were in the buildings on Monday/Tuesday and the other half were in the building on Thursday/Friday. The buildings were closed on Wednesdays for “deep cleanings”. Class sizes were small with the hybrid schedule so we had maybe ten (or fewer) students in the classroom and we were able to keep the students at least six feet apart to accommodate social distancing. Athletics continued and as cases in the classrooms increased, so went athletic teams. We learned, on the fly, about contact tracing and how the state wanted positive cases reported. We were, unofficially, a branch of the health department. We were told to tell parents that the health department would follow up with them after we gave them return to school dates and gathered the requisite information. If the department of health contacted the families, they gave the same information we did. Families frequently reported that they never heard from the health department.

The amount of time spent on state reporting, and in particular with contact tracing, caused the greatest disruptions to school nursing. Students had to be quarantined for vague symptoms and had to be isolated in the school setting which was very challenging. One positive student could cause an athletic team to be quarantined as well as multiple students in their classroom and on the bus. The cafeteria was another area we had to consider when quarantining. Students who had been in close contact with the positive case had to be pulled from the classroom for immediate dismissal in the hopes that the parents would come quickly to free up a space in a holding area for another student. Teachers had to stop what they were doing to recall what happened in their classroom 3-5 days prior and consider who was where and for how long. Parents who were gracious when they were called to collect their student for the first quarantine were not so much with subsequent calls.

Parents were frustrated that their student was being quarantined for the second (or more) time, perhaps, when s/he was not even having symptoms. I understood their frustration. My son was quarantined four times that school year (ten days at a time) and his building was closed twice due to excessive positive cases. It was the new normal and we were on a ride that we all wanted to get off. Parents vented their frustration to the school nurses because we were contact tracing and the point of contact. Some recognized that we were just the messenger and we were trying to keep all students as safe as possible.

Parents notified us of positive cases at all times of the day, so we were on call at home as well. There were no boundaries. If we didn’t call the parent back from home, they would send the student to school further exposing more students. Parents called for advice. Faculty and staff texted for advice or to report their own positive cases. Again, there were no boundaries – calls, texts, and emails were received without regard for my personal time. There was no down-time.

Dealing with Covid quickly overwhelmed the school nurse’s office leaving little time for routine sick/injury visits and daily meds. It was difficult to maintain confidentiality while calling parents to quarantine their student if ill students were in the health room. Students were sent home for just about any ailment, per health department guidelines, so it truly became all Covid, all day. It was impossible for the school nurse to make 20-50 calls a day to parents (just for pick-ups), so the main office needed to help. It was not sustainable. Somehow, we school nurses prevailed, because that’s what we do.

The availability of testing and vaccines changed the course of Covid-19 in the school setting. School districts re-opened for the 2021-2022 with a mask mandate in PA and a variety of district-specific protocols. Covid this school year is very different from last year. Masks are not required in my district, but there are students who choose to wear a mask. We are not contact tracing. We are not sending students home for vague symptoms. Cases decreased. As was reported in South Africa, positive cases in my building decreased precipitously in mid-February and I’ve had 3 reported cases since then.

My school nursing practice today resembles what it was prior to the pandemic. My folder of Covid papers/procedures is still on my desk, on stand-by. I hope I won’t need to use it in the next 20 days. I do feel as though Covid is still standing behind me, skulking. I don’t know what Covid will look like in the school setting in the future, but I am still standing. School nurses are resilient – it’s what we do.

According to NASA “Watch the Skies”, the Geminds are the most widely recognized meteor shower. Each year in December, the Earth passes through the trails of dust left by 3200 Phaethon, and we have the opportunity to view this spectacular astronomical display of light. This year, I eagerly awaited December 13^th, the first day of the peak display. As darkness approached, I ventured outside and was immediately rewarded with my first sighting. “Come outside!”

Twinkling Christmas lights, streets lights and the ever-present lights from cars driving down my street surround me. The Geminids are best viewed without surrounding light. This year, I was weary. The strain and busyness of the past semester and the past nine months, settled over me and kept me rooted in my backyard as opposed to venturing to the top of a hillside or mountain, far from the light pollution of the city. Yet, there they were. Those streaks of light across the sky were no less brilliant and fascinating than if had I viewed them from the top of Reddish Knob.

As I reflect on this past year, this theme of light resonates with me. From raging wildfires to a global pandemic, it would be easy to focus on the darkness. Yet, we have a choice. Focus on the darkness or watch for that streak of light that pierces the darkness and brings excitement and joy. I choose light and as I look back, I can see those instances of light.

In March, EMU made a quick shift to online learning. At the undergraduate level, faculty were faced with creating simulated clinical learning experiences, and figuring out how to finish out the semester in order to gradate our seniors. Faculty and staff problem-solved, students adapted, and we did it. It wasn’t easy and it wasn’t perfect, but we did it together. And at the end of the semester, we were able to celebrate and send another graduating class of EMU nurses into the workforce. In the fall, creative scheduling, virtual simulations, use of a new pediatric high-fidelity simulator (courtesy of a generous donor) and a high-flex learning environment allowed our nursing students to complete their clinical hours for the semester and make up missed hours from the spring. What an extraordinary accomplishment!

The RN-BSN, MSN and DNP programs, being online, did not require rapid shifts in curriculum. Yet the students in those programs, who are practicing nurses, were immediately thrust into the unknown. Extra shifts, furloughs, illness, new and ever-changing demands in the workplace, and barriers to projects quickly became obstacles for students to overcome. Faculty and students worked together and were able to successfully navigate the various circumstances that arose. And they didn’t just survive, they thrived!

The EMU nursing faculty, staff, and students rose to the challenge of 2020. I am continually amazed at the creativity and perseverance of my colleagues, and the adaptably and grace of our students. I am grateful every day to be a part of this community!

There is no question that this year has been challenging. To say that there were no moments of darkness would be unrealistic. Looking back, those streaks of light blaze true and clear.

“Look at this! Come outside!” I wonder if the words I uttered as I gazed on the brilliance of a meteor shower were similar to the words uttered by the wise men 2000 years ago as they gazed upon the Star of Bethlehem.  I wonder what the shepherds proclaimed when the sky filled with the glory of the Lord, and the angel proclaimed the birth of Jesus Christ, the long-awaited Messiah. In John 8:12 (NRSV), Jesus tells us, “I am the light of the world…” As we bring this year to a close, let us remember Christ, the Light of the World, who truly pierces the darkness.

Dr. Melody Cash, Professor and Department Chair