With OHS students returning to school in a blended model, many changes have been made to the typical school schedule. 

Students are separated into cohorts by last names; A-K is Cohort A and L-Z is Cohort B. Cohort A goes on Tuesdays and Thursdays, while Cohort B goes Wednesdays and Fridays. All students attend school online on Mondays. 

“We see the blended model as a step toward getting fully back,” said Superintendent Dr. Chris Gaines. “Guidelines from the Harvard Global Health Institute and the CDC both supported making model changes when they were announced. Guidance from county health has also changed to support the move.” 

Staff and students alike are having to adapt to never-before-seen changes to the typical school day. 

“I feel that it is harder to provide structure for my students,” said math teacher Denise Cashion. “For example, Google Classroom is much more difficult for me to keep up with since half of my students see me on Tuesdays and the other half, Wednesday.”

Many students have mixed feelings about being back in person. 

“I think that in person learning has its benefits but also has its cons,” said Kayla Soraghan (12). “In-person learning is really only beneficial for classes like P.E. For other classes, being online was better because we could see the teachers more than one time a week. As a senior I feel like I’m going to be behind when I get to college.”

Teachers are working hard to make sure OHS students are able to keep up and learn in the blended model.

“I think it will affect educators more so than students,” said Cashion. “I feel the educators here at OHS are resilient and will figure out a way to catch students back up next year and the year after until we are back to normal.”