Pandemic forces Marion County educators to rethink stress management

Oct. 14—WHITE HALL — For the first few weeks of school, first grade teacher Marsha Brand had just three in-person students in her classroom at White Hall Elementary.

"When we first came back [to school], we had some students who were in quarantine from day care or preschool so most of my class was quarantined at the beginning of the year," Brand said. "It was a big struggle for me to try and figure out how to relay the skills being taught in the classroom to the kids at home."

Usually, Brand would be teaching a class of about 22 students, but the COVID-19 pandemic and the county's quarantine restrictions has resulted in many teachers doubling up on their work.

While the state has relaxed the stringent quarantine protocols, the struggle of never knowing how many students will be in class or how much homework to prepare for quarantined kids has been a point of anxiety for teachers all over West Virginia.

"Because of the unknown of how many kids are going to end up being out or teachers being sick, we just worry about what's ahead us," Brand said. "In the past we really looked day-to-day... we never had to ask, 'Will we still be together next week?'"

Brand's fellow first grade teacher Rachelle Bourne said that just last week she had eight of her students out quarantined at home.

"Are we going to be a whole class or is part of the class at home and part is here?" Bourne said. "I feel like we're ping pong balls... last week I had to totally shift to putting all this work online and thinking 'How am I going to teach them from home and the rest here?'"

Many teachers work tirelessly to make sure their students are caught up and on task so that once the whole class is together, there aren't any students lagging.

All the stress and anxiety among teachers has an effect on the students, especially elementary students who are forming perceptions about the school experience.

"That's constantly on us too, we have to keep ourselves in check," Bourne said. "We constantly have to ask, 'Are [the kids] safe, are they distanced, do they have masks on?' All while having that front that we're not stressed. It can take a toll if you show that to the kids.

"It's so important for us to foster that love of learning and love of being in school, especially at such a young age," Bourne continued. "If they're coming to school everyday and feeling like it's a stressful place... then we're not fostering that love of wanting to be here."

At White Hall Elementary, Principal Nan Murray noticed the teachers were dealing with a lot of stress. She and the school's counselor came up with exercises and strategies to help lessen the load for teachers.

"Most of the time, we just think of the social and emotional wellness of the students, but we really also need to be thinking of the adults," School Counselor Charlene Sullivan said. "If [the teachers] aren't feeling supported... that's shared with the students."

Murray and Sullivan have been working with the teachers the last few weeks on such aspects as team building and dependency, as well as making sure the teachers are taking care of themselves.

One of the changes that has been recently implemented was improved communication between the administrators and the teachers, so now the teachers receive updates about quarantines and case tracking.

"The fact we communicate so well with the parents, teachers and the community has really helped ease some of the anxiety," Sullivan said. "We're all in this together and we can work together to make sure everyone feels comfortable and safe."

Murray was forward in saying that these staff morale boosters were needed and that she hopes teachers feel a bit more at ease.

"If our staff is happy and relaxed and feel safe to be here then our children feel the same," Murray said. "My big concern is always positivity and with [Sullivan] focusing on the mental wellbeing it just all helps so much."

The 2021-22 school year started at a tumultuous time. COVID-19 cases we're climbing toward the largest spike of the pandemic, and the school board was committed to five days a week of face-to-face instruction.

At the height of cases in the community, the schools had around 150 confirmed cases and hundreds of quarantines. Now, as case numbers continue to fall, Marion County School Superintendent Donna Hage hopes the worst has passed.

"Our schools are recovering to the 90 percent mark or higher for daily attendance," Hage said in a text message. "We are still putting our fingers in a lot of holes in the ship, but five days, face to face, mandatory masks and pushing awareness of vaccinations is still the path we recommend."

Although student attendance is back up, teacher shortages are still a reality. Wednesday, the county was short 11 teachers, which was about the number the county was short at the start of the school year in August.

"These numbers are way down compared to what we've experienced the last few weeks," Hage said. "We remain diligent realistic and cautiously optimistic."

Monday, the central office reported just six new COVID-19 cases in the schools. This time last month, there were about 20 new cases a day.

Reach David Kirk at 304-367-2522 or by email at dkirk@timeswv.com.