Morton Students are Back in School, Not All of Them Are Okay with It
The Morton School District 201 has several school campuses throughout Berwyn and Cicero, Ill. Across those campuses, students echo similar feelings of disappointment at not having online learning options, wanting better contact tracing and feeling like their opinions are ignored. One of the students sits in their home in Cicero, Ill. on February 7th, 2022 (Photo by Efrain Soriano).
By Efráin Soriano
Only two days before Morton East High School was set to return to in person learning on January 10, a social media post titled “I am a Chicagoland Public High School Student. Things are grim” surfaced on Reddit. It was written by a student concerned with the conditions of Morton East and the safety of the entire Morton community.
The post highlighted the high student to teacher ratio, small classrooms, the antiquated state of the building, lack of proper ventilation and little to no enforcement of COVID-19 regulations.
We had a chance to speak with the author of the Reddit post and two other students from the Morton Freshman Center and Morton East. Across these two campuses the students outlined a similar experience. The overcrowded hallways and lunchrooms, the lack of online options for students who test positive, added stress from poor contact tracing within schools and a desire to be taken into consideration when forming school-wide plans.
According to Morton’s district website, 110 cases of COVID-19 were reported across all Morton campuses between January 9 to February 1.
At the school board meeting held on January 12, the student representative on the board shared that 2-3 of his classmates had been missing from each of their classes.
The students we spoke to have chosen to remain anonymous, their class and school will be listed for reference alongside a different name (we have confirmed the identity of all students).
Here is what students have to say:
How safe do you and your peers feel at school with these current guidelines set by Morton?
“Amongst most students, there’s a lot of dread in coming back to the exact same situation before the pandemic. We’re hearing staff talk amongst themselves about how teachers are being told to come back if they’re asymptomatic. My friend's English teacher was sent home yesterday because he tested positive, and is being allowed to return tomorrow.” - Angela, Senior, Morton East
“In general a lot of students probably enjoy having real life human interactions with their teachers and friends. Even though I enjoy talking to my teachers and fellow classmates I don't feel safe there at all. I constantly feel uncomfortable in the crowded halls, cafeteria, and small classrooms. It seems like the majority don't really care but I think that's because they think there isn't much they can do about it to change anything.” - Emma, Senior, Morton East
“I think most of my peers are not really concerned about COVID-19 because they want to hang out with their friends. I don’t feel 100% safe with the current guidelines, more so like 50% safe.” - Alexis, Freshman, Freshman Center
A student reported that Morton offers no clear online learning alternative for students who test positive with COVID-19. How do you feel about that?
“For a lot of my peers in AP/Honors classes, it’s something that causes a lot of anxiety when we hear someone in one of our classes tested positive. We can’t afford to be missing 5-10+ days of material in 3 and oftentimes even more, AP classes with no option to learn remotely. Most teachers don't post what the assignment is on Teams nor are they well versed in being able to upload materials into onenote.” - Angela, Senior, Morton East
“Yes that is true, they do not give a remote option for those who have to quarantine. It feels like they're setting the students up for failure since missing 2 weeks worth of work for multiple classes is very difficult and stressful.” - Emma, Senior, Morton East
“I’m not completely sure, but I have heard some kids say that they tell the teacher the situation and the teacher posts most of the assignments on Teams. When they come back after 2 weeks they do tests in-person. From what I know, Morton is trying their best to stay in-person 100%” - Alexis, Freshman, Freshman Center
Have you been made aware of any teachers or students who tested positive within your classes? How has Morton gone about contact tracing?
“Some students have taken reporting positive test into their own hands, posting their results on social media instead of notifying the school. I had that experience in 1st semester, it's how I found out I was in contact with someone who had COVID. The after school club nor my class hour with this person was notified of the exposure. From my friends who have dealt with the contact tracing, they just ask students to say who they had close contact with. Many would feel a lot safer if they told students who sat around someone who tested positive about such.” - Angela, Senior, Morton East
“They do not tell us directly. The only way to know how many people tested positive is if you go to their website and check. However the students would never know if they were in close contact with any of those people unless the teachers say something. Only on one occasion did one of my teachers have positive cases in one of her classes but she simply just told us and didn't take any extra precautions.” - Emma, Senior, Morton East
“I think there have been a couple of students with COVID especially after winter break but I only figured it out because their friends would tell us. When a student tests positive they have to stay at home for 2 weeks. I would like it if administrators or other adults would tell us when someone we have been near has tested positive for COVID-19.” - Alexis, Freshman, Freshman Center
In an ideal world, if you could change whatever you wanted, what do you think school should look like during the pandemic?
“Giving students the option to go remote and pushing that as the default, like we had it last year where students could opt into going to school in person/have the library open for students who don’t have reliable internet access” - Angela, Senior, Morton East
“In an ideal world for me the school would test students every week like I've seen other schools do and give the option to choose whether to do remote or in person learning.” - Emma, Senior, Morton East
“For me in an ideal world, school would be a mix of in-person and online learning or students have the choice between those two options. If possible, the school could provide everyone in the school a COVID test every week.” - Alexis, Freshman, Freshman Center
Is there anything you would like to add or a message you might have for Morton and the district?
“More and more students are getting fed up with the neglect of student input on this, the new guidelines on the Morton 201 website are harmful to our community that has disproportionately been affected by the pandemic. It feels as if it's a fast track to getting everything shut down again, it's a disservice to everyone in Cicero/Berwyn.” - Angela, Senior, Morton East
“Just that I think they should close the school and go remote again since I don't see any action happening even though it's our 3rd year into this pandemic. I personally haven't reached out but I'd like it if the school did surveys to ask us how we felt or the teachers directly asked us to hear our thoughts.” - Emma, Senior, Morton East
“I think it would be better for students to isolate longer than 5 days to reduce the chance of others getting COVID as well. As a community, we should be able to work together and find what best works for everyone’s safety.” - Alexis, Freshman, Freshman Center
What does a regular day of in person learning look like at Morton right now compared to pre-pandemic?
“It’s the same as it normally was, now with hearing complaints in the hallways about students not wanting to wear masks. Only one teacher acknowledged the spike in cases after we got back from break and emphasized how social distancing is more necessary.” - Angela, Senior, Morton East
“Honestly not much has changed other than the fact that we have to wear masks. And I see that as a downside because the school is just as majorly packed everyday in the halls, there’s no order, and no protocols are being enforced. Also it’s not required for all students to have the covid vaccine even though they gave the impression that it was. Before school went back in person, my parents received a call saying that I had to get vaccinated, so I assumed every other student did too but I found out otherwise while actually being there.” - Emma, Senior, Morton East
“Passing periods near the stairs are mostly crowded. In lunch the seating is how it was before the pandemic started. There is not a lot of social distancing, I mean I get why it’s difficult, there are many students and it’s hard to distance as well as control that everyone wears their masks properly. In my classes, everyone wears their mask properly but when I get to the hallways, gym, or cafeteria there are a couple of people who aren’t wearing them properly.” - Alexis, Freshman, Freshman Center
Efráin Soriano is a contributing reporter for Cicero Independiente and they are a local freelance photographer.
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