Professional Title: Principal

Class Year: 2009

Major: Elementary Education

Location: Greensboro, NC

Education Experience: 11 years

Please share your experience working with students during the pandemic?

As an elementary school principal, my experience during the pandemic has been multifaceted. During the start of the pandemic in March 2020, a lot of my time was dedicated to ensuring that my students had access to devices to complete assignments that we knew eventually would be remote. This time was also dedicated to ensuring that my students received meals as they normally would if they were in school, and leading the efforts with my support staff to conduct wellness checks of students and their families. Supporting my teachers and staff was another critical focus. In a matter of days, they transitioned from in person instruction to remote learning which caused a lot of stress for those who were not tech savvy. However, teachers did overcome this obstacle and were able to deliver online lessons. As principal, I was able to participate in these lessons virtually and still get to see my students thrive as they adapted to what seemed to be the “new normal.” Presently, we have taken steps to welcome students back to school gradually. My Pre-K and Kindergarten students are back in the building for half a day and I’m hopeful that I’ll have more of my students back in our building soon.

What advice would you give to people during this pandemic?

Give yourself grace. No one in our lifetime has done this before, so while it might be frustrating in this current state, this too shall pass.