Weather conditions treated West Delaware students to a post-Valentine’s Day treat—no school! At least, no physical school. 

Due to the extreme cold, Superintendent Dr. Kristen Rickey cancelled school on Monday, Feb. 15. However, students PreK-12 were still required to participate in remote learning for the day.  

High school students voiced mixed opinions regarding virtual learning. Senior Jadyn Werner spent around 10 minutes on each of her four classes, completing her classwork for the day in just under an hour.  

“I felt like it was a first day of school—like a preview of what virtual could be,” Werner said.  “It felt very elementary school.” 

At the same time, some students spent much more time on their homework, like Lydia Heims (10). 

“I spent three hours doing homework in the morning. I didn’t have a whole lot, so it didn’t really take that long,” Heims said. “It wasn’t terrible, but I kind of like being in school better so then the teachers explain stuff.”  

Overall, teachers had a positive experience with virtual learning. Math teacher Mary Wegmann thought virtual learning was a great opportunity to keep her students engaged.  

“My students did a good job of completing their expectations,” Wegmann said. “Learning at the end of the year when it’s warm in June is difficult.”  

Art teacher Jolene Pitzenberger-Timp also liked remote learning and was impressed with her students’ responsibility.  

“I had very few that emailed me with questions because the assignments were clear cut, the instructions were straightforward, and I had enough time to prepare them ahead of time—where to go, what to look for, what my expectations were,” Pitzenberger-Timp said. 

Since West Delaware has already used the three pre-scheduled make-up days in the school calendar (Feb. 19, April 1, and April 6), any further cancellations will result in remote learning.