Finals week has been referred to by some as “hell week”. With only four days to get in every assignment and having tests on everything learned this quarter, It has caused a lot of stress between students and faculty. Getting sick on finals week can be considered a failure to certain people. But what if they had the disease that is forcing schools all over the state to shift to Distance Learning?

“Steve” is a sophomore that has a part time job after school. As policy for that job he must be tested twice a week. Saturday night, he was informed two hours into his shift that he had tested positive and must leave. He had been sick two days before testing positive. Steve mulled over the consequences of staying home. He would miss all five days, if he were to follow CDC guidelines. He ultimately decided that his grades were more important than following the rules. He said that he thinks he made the right decision. He is now attending school asymptomatically, wearing a mask at the encouragement of his parents.

 “Even if I lost my leg, I would still go to school during finals, basically I either go to school with COVID or fail out of all my classes.” – Steve

“Francis”, a sophomore who diligently masks everywhere he goes, felt sick after school. He received a positive test Thursday after school. Upon receiving a positive test, Francis, who is very involved in after school activities, debated coming back to school in order to continue band practice, publications involvement, and an after school activity. He would miss a meet and would miss most of finals prep. He ultimately made the decision to stay home. Missing multiple tests and multiple assignments, with no way to complete them at home, Francis will have to squeeze four days of school work into just two days. 

Even with all the consequences, Francis still thinks he made the right choice. Some students avoid taking a COVID test while sick because a positive diagnosis would derail their sports, activities, and academic life.

“I was considering lying about my test, just so I wouldn’t have to miss three of the last five days of the term.” – Francis

 “I still think it was right to test,” he said, “even with the regrets I have about missing out on a lot”. 

In self quarantine, Francis remains mentally active, spending every waking hour composing music and extending his knowledge of social studies.

The problem is, there isn’t enough food to go around. Students are still getting food each day, but it frequently isn’t the food advertised on the monthly menu. By D-Lunch many students receive an improvised menu based on whatever the cafeteria has available. During one lunch period, students went from receiving chicken patties on buns, to chicken patties on wheat bread, to hamburgers. 

Nutrition Services Director Kim Hinrichs said that this issue is occuring in school cafeterias nationwide due to supply chain disruptions. Hinrichs is in charge of ordering and planning all meals in the BHM district.

“The shortages of certain items are due to the manufacturers not being able to keep up with supply and demand,” Hinrichs said. “Trucking issues, food production issues and labor shortages all play a part. This is a nationwide problem for all businesses, not just schools. Just as families had to make substitutions on grocery lists last year, schools will have to make some last-minute changes to our regular menus, based on availability.”

According to a survey published on July 8, 97% of school nutrition directors reported serious concerns about supply-chain. This problem had first started in 2020, when the first wave of COVID 19 hit, and many people were laid-off or fired. This included people that worked on manufacturing, people who helped to produce the food for local school districts, and also a large number of truck drivers that were responsible for delivering it. A district in St. Paul even resorted to freezing grilled cheese sandwiches, for preparation if they run out of food completely.

Because of all these people being fired or laid-off, the school food chain shattered, and many schools are unable to get enough meals for every student in the school. The school district sent out an email about the shortages in September and clarified that they don’t know any clear date or time when this food shortage will end.