52 weeks. 12 months.

In March, the state quickly shut down school buildings in the state due to a few known cases of a virus. That alone probably saved lives and staved off transmission. Then we had to enter the world of remote instruction literally overnight. No real preparation for it. No professional development.

Literally overnight.

What these past twelve months have clearly showed us is that too many in our society do not truly understand that schools are more than just buildings and that our public school system is a common good that should be invested in and more respected.

With the one-year anniversary of school buildings being order closed due to COVID-19 consider the following questions:

Can you as an educator think of a time in your career where you worked so hard for an extended period of time doing tasks that could never be measured by a standardized test?

Do you feel more respected as an educator now than you did 12 months ago?

Do you feel that you are a better educator than you were 12 months ago?

Do you feel more supported than you did 12 months ago by your Central Office and by your community and by your lawmakers?

There are many educators young enough to look at these questions and think about whether or not they might try a new career. There are educators old enough to be able to consider retirement who may have not thought about it a year ago.

The effects of this pandemic are going to be felt for a long time.

The effects of how we handled this pandemic may be felt for longer.