St. Charles North students relish returning to full week of in-person learning

For St. Charles North senior Jessica Winkates, returning to school for a full week of in-person learning has given her a chance to connect with her fellow students.

“I haven’t seen a lot of these kids in over a year, so it’s kind of like my senior year is coming full circle,” she said on Friday after school was dismissed for the day. “And it’s nice for closure, to see everyone.”

Dist. 303 middle school and high school students on April 5 returned to in-person learning five days a week following spring break. The district’s elementary school students were already doing in-person learning five days a week.

The change took place as a result of the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Illinois State Board of Education recently releasing revised public health guidance for schools.

Social distance for in-person learning is now defined as 3 to 6 feet for students and fully vaccinated staff.

“Maintaining 6 feet remains the safest distance, but schools can operate at no less than 3 feet in order to provide in-person learning,” stated the Illinois State Board of Education. “Unvaccinated staff should maintain 6 feet social distance as much as possible because adults remain more susceptible to infection than children. Strict adherence to social distancing must be maintained when face masks are removed in limited situations and monitored by school staff.”

This was the first full week of in-person learning for the district since the pandemic forced schools across the area to close in March 2020.

“I’ve missed seeing and meeting new people,” Winkates said.

And although she sees the advantages of remote learning, she prefers in-person learning.

“Remote learning definitely has its benefits,” she said. “You have more time to yourself and you can be a lot more independent with your learning. But I personally am a very social person.”

St. Charles North senior Paranshu Shah also was relishing being back at school.

“It’s been a good week,” Shah said. “It definitely is more productive and it’s easier to pay attention in your classes.”

It also gave Shah a chance to reconnect with people.

“There were a few people that I just haven’t talked to in person in a year,” he said.

Shah said he is glad to be finishing his high school career by attending his classes in person.

“It definitely rounds out my experience at North in a better way,” Shah said.

He also is thankful that he will be graduating in person with his fellow classmates. Graduation ceremonies for St. Charles North and St. Charles East are set to take place May 24 at Huskie Stadium at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb.

The pandemic forced the cancellation of last year’s graduation ceremonies.

“It will be nice to finally have all the seniors there in one place one more time before we eventually graduate,” Shah said.

Winkates said she is also happy she will be able to share that moment with her classmates.

“It’s so important, especially in regards to closure, being together with your whole class one last time,” she said. “And I feel like that’s something we took for granted before the pandemic. But now I think we realize that just being together is a privilege.”

St. Charles North senior Brigid Redmond-Mattucci said she has felt more engaged this week.

“I feel a lot more engaged in class now than when I was hybrid, half in-person and half remote,” she said. “It’s definitely been a lot nicer to be in-person every single day, to be able to see my peers and interact with them and to be more engaged in class.”

Redmond-Mattucci said she was constantly distracted at home during her remote learning classes.

“It was a lot harder to stay focused,” she said. “I have lots of pets at home and also siblings. If my mom needed me to do something, I would have to turn my camera off and leave class for a second. So as far as distractions, obviously, it’s a lot more distracting at home.”