South will reopen its doors in late January for in-person schooling. For many, this is going to be beneficial towards their learning, for others seen to be pointless. Seniors are conflicted about whether or not to go back to school. Some believe that going back to school is good, finishing their high school at Grosse Pointe South, while others see no point in returning to school, as they feel the new hybrid schedule won’t be effective or reliable.

The senior class was pulled out of school, much like the rest of Grosse Pointe South in mid-March 2019 as juniors. After spending months of their later months in high school virtual, going back to school now, nearly 11 months later causes mixed feelings. Senior Antonio Cavaliere said going back to high school will help with motivation.

“I think going back to school will give students way more motivation,” Cavaliere said. “Being online, there is a lack of motivation among students. Going back to school will help me to get motivated again.”

Virtual school has provided students with motivational challenges, as a lack of structured classroom learning can cause students to become disengaged with their work. Seniors know that their time at South is dwindling, so spending it through a computer isn’t the ideal situation they want to be in. Sam Cieleska ‘21 said that his last days at South should be spent in the building.

“I want to spend my last months at South,” Cieleska said. “I spent months in the building, so I really want to finish my high school time at the school instead of online.”

Some seniors feel that there is no point in going back, as they feel South is going to shut down after a few COVID cases, which they believe is inevitable. Holden Novak ‘21 feels this way. He thinks that he would rather stick with the online schedule, as he feels in school learning will be unstable and unreliable.

“I personally do not see a point in going back to school anymore,” Novak said. “The school will likely shut down after a few COVID cases come through. The odds of that happening are very high.”

In regards to the hybrid schedule, seniors feel collective that the student body and faculty have to work into the schedule and see how it goes over. Some think by the end of the year we will go back full time, and some think we won’t go back full time until next school year. Cavaliere said that students will have to work together if they want to go back full time.

“We should probably stick with the hybrid schedule, just work into it and see how it goes,” Cavaliere said. “There are going to be some challenges, like getting kids to wear masks right and there are going to be positive COVID cases, but we can only really see how it goes.”

Seniors wish to see their friends and peers in school one last time before they go their separate ways. Cieleska thinks that if the school can somehow maintain low COVID cases and provide a stable schedule, seeing friends in school will be very enjoyable.

“If we can work together and stay in school throughout the year, I think that will be very beneficial,” Cieleska said. “I will be happier to see my friends in the classroom rather than through a screen.”

Time will only tell for the seniors to return. While some seniors anxiously await the day they can return to school and finish out their careers at South, some see more trouble. The collective voice of the senior body thinks as long as cases are low and things go smoothly, they can finally end their years at Grosse Pointe South in the building.

“I am looking forward to going back and seeing people for the first time in a while,” Novak said. “As long as things go the right way, I think we can stay in school until the end of the year.”