Photo Courtesy of Matti Blume

  Schools like San Luis Obispo High School are currently a hot spot for illnesses like COVID-19, but students aren’t worrying about the health risks.

  The majority of students faced difficulties with distance learning. Virtual curriculums like the ones at SLOHS led to a significant drop in academic performances and grades; isolating students would only complicate their future.

  “I would say that going to school is worth the risk. I’ve definitely been able to perform a lot better in person than online. The opportunity that getting good grades can give you very much outweighs the work you have to do in order to achieve this,” said senior Chris Jewell.

  The first COVID-19 wave’s lethality necessitated a quarantine, but the Omicron Variant‘s significantly reduced death toll minimizes another lockdown’s possibility. With prior vaccination, most people can fully recover within a short time frame.

  The current safety protocols are enough to stunt the spread of Omicron over the remaining high school year without noticeably impacting most students’ education. 

  “Emailing my teachers was good enough to make up for the work; I was physically sick for about four days, and I kept testing positive for ten days,” said senior Nicholas Chaves.

  Physical health is often neglected by most teenagers. Teens will inadequately sleep, lack nutritional standards, and ignore exercise to spend their time on other essential activities. Disregarding the risks attending school poses is only a piece of the unhealthy pie that is modern teenage culture.

“We are never ever ever getting back together with Distance ‘Learning’ because it isn’t learning,” said English teacher Scott Nairne.