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14 Fredericksburg Parent and Family • Stories of Strength - One Year Stronger Virtual classroom. Distance learning. Online school. Homeschooling. Whatever you called the 2020/2021 school year environment, most parents, students and educa- tors are relieved to be done with it and to be back in a brick-and-mortar classroom. "Everyone wants a fast return to normal," says Dr. Matthew Eberhardt, deputy superintendent of Fredericksburg City Public Schools. But the 2021/2022 school year is far from normal. Teachers and students are trying to catch up on unfinished learning and learn new material at what many would con- sider a dizzying pace. Schools still must follow CDC guidelines, which include mask- wearing inside school buildings, three feet of social distancing, and following other protocols for things like disinfecting and quarantining exposed staff and students. Keeping everyone on task and following the rules is a challenging job that requires constant attention, but the Deputy Superintendent says we should remain positive. "Certainly, students don't all follow the protocols, and we know our job as adults is to help teach them what is expected," says Eberhardt. "But honestly children are ter- rific; we should stay focused on that." While things are not back to pre-COVID normal yet, the dramatic decrease in positive cases in the school district helps Eberhardt stay upbeat. In August, Fredericksburg City schools were reporting around 100 positive cases a week. Now, there are less than 10 a week. with FCPS Deputy Superintendent Matthew Eberhardt "We feel that parents have been great part- ners with us in helping keep those numbers down and trusting us as we work together," says Eberhardt. To keep parents in the know about the current COVID situation in their child's school, notifications are sent every time a positive case pops up. Schools have also installed a COVID dashboard onto their website which is constantly being updated with current stats. Parents are still voicing their concerns, but fortunately, their worries have been greatly eased. "We think that vaccination availability and our demonstrated success with COVID mitigations have reduced the numbers of parent concerns from what we heard last year." WRITTEN BY RHIANNON ELLIS How Schools Have Adapted to COVID