Students in many Minnesota communities packed their backpacks and headed into classrooms Tuesday morning, kicking off a third school year altered by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Many, particularly in metro-area schools, were wearing masks because of school district-imposed mask mandates. Some entered classrooms where desks are still carefully spaced to allow for extra distance, and some aren't in classrooms at all — opting instead for one of a growing number of online learning programs offered across the state.
But unlike last fall, the majority of students heading back for the 2021-22 academic year will be in person, getting face-to-face greetings from teachers and principals hoping for a less chaotic school year.
Pat Isbell teaches fourth grade at Duluth's Lester Park Elementary School. Keeping kids safe is her first job, she said, and teaching them is second. With COVID, "that hasn't changed at all," she said, and she's happy that Duluth schools require all to wear masks. When class resumed for part of last year, mask-wearing wasn't an issue for her fourth-graders.
"We were so excited to be together I think they would have worn a full bodysuit of armor," Isbell said.
Outside Duluth East High School, Cassie Chambers, a senior, said she's not worried yet about the prospect of having to return to distance learning.
"It feels good to be back," she said Tuesday morning outside the school. "Last year was really hard."
But others aren't sure what to expect. Jess Hehir, a parent of three Duluth students, said she's anxious about a return to school full-time, not only because of the surge in cases, but because her kids haven't been around their peers much for 18 months.
"Social skills have been lost, and I worry about how that will emerge as they return to society," Hehir said. "It's already hard enough for middle schoolers."
Among the districts starting classes Tuesday was Minnesota's largest, Anoka-Hennepin Schools. It's also the first day of class in Elk River, Eastern Carver County, Duluth, many Twin Cities-area charter schools, and dozens of school districts across greater Minnesota.
In a few large districts, students are still soaking up a final day — or two — of summer.
While the Tuesday after Labor Day is the traditional start date for most Minnesota schools, the majority of metro-area districts, along with several in greater Minnesota, delayed their starts this year. That's because of the timing of Rosh Hashana, the two-day celebration of the Jewish New Year that this year began on Monday evening. Most of the state's largest districts, including Minneapolis, Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan and Osseo, will begin classes Wednesday. St. Paul Public Schools' first day of the year will be Thursday.
Staff writer Jana Hollingsworth contributed to this report.
Erin Golden • 612-673-4790
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